Criminal charges will be filed against the parents of six-year-old Falcon Heene, a Colorado sheriff said, after authorities were led to believe the boy had floated away in a balloon.
Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden said Richard and Mayumi Heene have not been arrested, and the type of charges were still being considred.
"We were looking at Class 3 misdemeanor, which hardly seems serious enough given the circumstances," Alderden said. "We are talking to the district attorney, federal officials to see if perhaps there aren't additional federal charges that are appropriate in this circumstance."
Both parents spent several hours at the sheriff's office on Saturday afternoon before heading home.
The Heenes reported that their son Falcon had been inside the family's homemade balloon when it launched from their backyard on Thursday afternoon. But Falcon had been hiding in the rafters of his family's garage.
The balloon became untethered from the family's backyard on Thursday and floated more than 80 kilometres with authorities in tow before touching down near the Denver airport.
Mayumi Heene told an emergency dispatcher that her son was in "a flying saucer," apparently under the impression that Falcon had climbed into the balloon.
However, in an interview with CNN after he was found, Falcon told his father "you said we did this for a show," when he was asked why he didn't emerge from his hiding place earlier.
On Saturday, Richard Heene promised a "big announcement," which had reporters waiting anxiously outside the family home for a 10 a.m. news conference.
But when Heene emerged from his home, he told reporters he would take written questions, to be dropped in a cardboard box on the doorstep, to answer at a news conference later in the day.
When a reporter shouted a question, asking if the incident was a hoax, Heene replied: "Absolutely no hoax. I want your questions in the box," Heene said.
The family's behaviour before and after the incident has raised eyebrows, and questions.
They gave numerous media interviews after Falcon was found. During two of them, Falcon threw up when asked why he hid.
And the Heenes called the Federal Aviation Administration and a local television station before calling emergency services.
Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden said that despite the family's actions, he has no evidence that they were carrying out a hoax when they reported their son had floated away.
"We were convinced yesterday ... that the parents were being honest with us," Sheriff Jim Alderden said at a news conference on Friday afternoon.
Alderden said he believes the family's explanation for why Falcon remained in hiding: he was frightened because his father yelled at him for playing near the balloon.
However, if officials determine the incident was a hoax, the parents could be charged with making a false report to authorities, Alderden said.
If charges are laid, Alderden said, then local officials would also be able to try to recoup costs associated with the air and ground search.
Allegations that the family was seeking a reality-TV deal surfaced when the media realized they had appeared on the reality show "Wife Swap."
The show's production company has said it had a deal with the family that has now been called off. TLC also said the family pitched a reality show, which it turned down.
With files from The Associated Press
