U.S. & World

FORT COLLINS, Colo. (CBS) ― A Colorado sheriff expects charges of conspiracy, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, making a false report to authorities and attempting to influence a public servant, in the much publicized 'Balloon Boy' case. 

Sheriff Jim Alderden confirmed that the drama was indeed a hoax and said that he believes the Heene family carried out the ordeal of releasing the balloon on Thursday with hopes of them better marketing themselves for a reality television show sometime in the future.

The sheriff said no charges had been filed yet, and the parents weren't under arrest. Alderden added that all three children knew of the publicity stunt,  but won't likely face charges because of their age.  The sheriff also said that he can prove that the balloon was not capable of carrying a boy of Falcon Heene's weight.

Some of the most serious charges each carry a maximum sentence of six years in prison and a $500,000 fine.

Deputies searched the home of the boy's parents Saturday night, carrying away several boxes and a computer.

Alderden said 6-year-old Falcon may not have even been in the rafters in the garage, as originally reported, based on where the investigators were when the boy entered the house.

"For all we know he may have been two blocks down the road playing on the swing in the city park," he said.

Heene, a storm chaser and inventor, and his family have appeared on the reality show "Wife Swap." Alderden said the couple met in acting school in Hollywood.

Alderden said interviews with the parents Saturday resulted in enough information to get a warrant to search the house. He said they were looking for computers, e-mails, phone records and financial records.

Alderden said the children were still with the parents Sunday morning, and child protective services had been contacted to investigate the children's well-being.

The sheriff initially said there was no reason to believe the incident was a hoax. Authorities questioned the Heenes again after Falcon turned to his dad during a CNN interview Thursday night and said what sounded like "you said we did this for a show" when asked why he didn't come out of his hiding place.

Falcon got sick during two separate TV interviews Friday when asked again why he hid.

A Colorado State University physics professor, using dimensions given by Richard Heene, had told sheriff's officials as they were tracking the balloon Thursday that it was plausible for it to lift off with 37-pound Falcon inside.

Once the device landed, sheriff's officials discovered it was made with plastic tarps taped together and covered with aluminum foil, with a utility box made of a very thin piece of plywood, cardboard on the side, held together with string and duct tape, Alderden said.

Using the true dimensions, the professor determined it could not have launched with the boy inside, Alderden said.

The parents, Richard and Mayumi Heene, met with Larimer County investigators for much of Saturday afternoon amid lingering questions about whether he perpetrated a publicity stunt when his 6-year-old son Falcon vanished into the rafters of his garage while the world thought he was zooming through the sky in a flying saucer-like helium balloon.

Alderden on Saturday didn't call Thursday's hours-long drama a hoax, but he expressed disappointment that he couldn't level more serious charges in the incident, which sent police and the military scrambling to save young Falcon Heene as millions of worried television viewers watched.

(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)