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| US balloon boy parents are jailed | US balloon boy parents are jailed |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| A US man who triggered a major alert by claiming his son was adrift in a helium balloon has been sentenced to 90 days in jail - and his wife to 20. | A US man who triggered a major alert by claiming his son was adrift in a helium balloon has been sentenced to 90 days in jail - and his wife to 20. |
| Richard and Mayumi Heene reported in October their son had been carried away by the balloon - causing a media drama. | |
| Six-year-old Falcon Heene was finally found hiding at home. | Six-year-old Falcon Heene was finally found hiding at home. |
| Appearing in court in Colorado, Mr Heene said he was "very, very sorry" and apologised to rescue workers and the local community. | Appearing in court in Colorado, Mr Heene said he was "very, very sorry" and apologised to rescue workers and the local community. |
| The judge also ordered four years of supervised probation for the couple and banned them from receiving any form of financial benefit from the case. | |
| Mr Heene and his wife Mayumi, 45, had pleaded guilty to charges that they carried out the balloon stunt to promote a reality TV show. | |
| 'Wasted money' | |
| The prosecutor had argued the couple should face time in jail to act as a deterrent to others who may be considering mounting similar stunts for financial gain and publicity. | |
| Prosecutors had asked for a jail sentence to deter others | |
| He said Mr Heene had "wasted a lot of man power and a lot of money in wanting to get himself some publicity". | |
| He argued that the couple had acted not on the behest of any TV companies but that "they came up with it all on their own, not necessarily just to get a TV show but at least to put their name out there again and maybe in hopes that somebody would pick them up". | |
| "For that," he said "they do need to be punished". | |
| Richard Heene, 48, will be allowed to serve 60 days of his 90-day sentence on work release, allowing him to work as a construction contractor during the day, while spending the night in jail. | |
| He will start serving his sentence on 11 January 2010. | |
| The judge also ruled that Richard Heene must serve 100 hours of community service and write a letter of apology to the community and public service agencies which helped search for his son. | |
| The couple had already been ordered to pay $42,000 in restitution for the emergency services' rescue efforts. |