It's been ten years since we had the story of the 6-year-old boy who floated away in a flying saucer-shaped hot air balloon by himself. The whole USA was on edge until we found out Falcon Heene was in the attic of his home the whole time. Was it a mistake or an elaborate hoax? Officials began to suspect it was a publicity stunt for Richard Heene's reality TV plans.
Today, the Heenes live in a camper trailer parked on the side of a twisting country road. A 160-year-old farmhouse slumps just a few yards away, a spray of mold running up the white siding. The house is a renovation project the Heenes are working on for an investor in Florida, where the family had been living since Richard pleaded guilty to one felony charge of attempting to influence a public servant in relation to what came to be known as the Balloon Boy Hoax. Richard served 30 days in jail and 60 nights of work release, and in August 2010 he moved his family 1,900 miles from Colorado to Florida. Now in the New York countryside for the summer and fall, the Heenes were, in all likelihood, the most famous people in their zip code.
Robert Sanchez visited the family, and also combed through documents from the balloon boy saga to find the truth. Whether he found it or not, the story is a compelling read at 5280 magazine. -via Digg
(Image credit: Sgt. Benjamin Crane)