Richard Heene: I Only Pleaded Guilty to Protect My Family

The father behind the balloon-boy incident — Richard Heene — says he only pleaded guilty to save "my family and my wife."

Balloon Boy father sentenced to 90 days for hoax

Heene, who recently was sentenced to 90 days in jail, told Larry King that the incident was not a hoax and that he pleaded guilty to charges of influencing a public servant to prevent wife Mayumi from being deported to Japan.

Balloon boy bill comes due: $42,000 for hoax

When King asked Heene about son Falcon's comment that it was all done "for a show," Heene prefaced his response by saying the 6-year-old boy only learned to speak English three and a half years ago.  

Balloon Boy vomits twice on television during questioning

He further tried to explain that his son had been asked by a Japanese cameraman to show him how he got into the attic — apparently for the cameraman's own TV program. "That's why Falcon answered [as he did]," Heene said.

Larimer County Sheriff Jim Alderden, however, doesn't buy it and said the evidence is "overwhelming."

"I'm shocked he would make such statements," Alderden told King. "There's no doubt in my mind that this thing was a hoax."

The interview will air Friday on Larry King Liveat 9/8c on CNN.

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