Richard Heene, who settled in Bradenton last month after the "balloon boy" hoax landed him in a Colorado jail, has started a new business offering relief for those who "itch like a son of a twitch."
On his website and in a video, Heene, who is registered with the Manatee County Sheriff's Office as a convicted felon, is marketing the "Bear Scratch," a device that allows users to scratch an itchy back the same way bears do in the wild. You attach it to a wall, back up against it and then rub yourself up and down.
Heene, who according to reports has long had an itch to get into show business, gives it all, hawking the product in typical TV pitchman fashion. In the video, Heene, who with his family is reportedly staying with his mother in the Waterlefe area of East Manatee, is wearing a University of South Florida baseball cap.
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But as a fallback, Heene is trying to pay the bills by working construction, according a report at RadarOnline.com.
A friend told the website: “It seems like a crazy idea but Richard has always fancied himself as an inventor.”
It was last Oct. 15 when the family’s misadventure got nationwide attention.
Amateur storm-chasers who had twice appeared on ABC’s “Wife Swap,” the Heenes concocted the publicity stunt after networks kept rejecting pitches for a reality TV show.
The Heenes reported their son had floated away in a homemade spaceship-shaped helium balloon, triggering a cross-country rescue attempt involving dozens of emergency responders and two Colorado National Guard helicopters.
After the balloon crash-landed in a field, rescuers found it was unoccupied.
Falcon was safe at the family’s Fort Collins home, about 60 miles north of Denver.
The Heenes’ story began to unravel.
When it was apparent there would be legal consequences, Rae Sprow told the Bradenton Herald on Nov. 13: “If my son or his wife have to go to jail, I will provide a safe haven and home. We are willing to pitch in and help if necessary. The boys are a joy to be around.”
Richard Heene pleaded guilty to a felony count of attempting to influence a public servant and served a 30-day jail term.
Mayumi Heene pleaded guilty to filing a false report and served a 20-day jail term.
They must make regular monthly payments toward a court-ordered $36,000 restitution for costs incurred by police and rescue personnel.
The Federal Aviation Administration also fined the Heenes $8,000 for launching an aircraft that wandered into the path of planes at Denver International Airport, briefly forcing a runway to be closed.
According to court officials, Heene’s probation has been transferred to Florida. Terms of the probation include not selling their story or profiting from it until December 2013.
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