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Businessman’s balloon stunt is a bust, gets him busted
Published July 23, 2015
A Canadian daredevil’s high-flying advertising stunt led to an unintended destination: police custody.
Dan Boria was arrested Sunday after parachuting from a lawn chair rigged with 100 helium-filled balloons. The sky ride took Boria so high, he says he carried an oxygen tank with him and even peered down on a 747.
“It was a surreal experience,” Boria told the Calgary Sun. Boria is a Victoria, B.C., resident who moved to Calgary for the opportunity, according to the New Glasgow News.
The feat was designed to promote Boria’s cleaning company, with the 26-year-old intending to parachute into a local park. But powerful winds pushed him a mile off course, spoiling the plan.
“It would have been cheaper for him to rent a billboard.”
Boria leaped out of the chair somewhere in the clouds (he hasn’t revealed his exact elevation), parachuting to the ground. The chair was found later in the evening in a ditch with about 15 balloons still attached, according to the Sun.
Boria said he was charged with mischief causing danger to life and Inspector Kyle Grant said more charges were possible.
“That chair has to come down and there’s the possibility it could land on a person, a vehicle, a house and cause damage,” Grant told the Calgary Sun. “This is where that plan wasn’t thought out very well.”
Boria said he practiced skydiving 30 times in preparation, according to the National Post.
Aside from the charges, there were other repercussions for Boria: Grant said the self-proclaimed experienced skydiver injured his ankle during landing. Then there’s the reported $13,000 cost of the helium balloons.
“It would have been cheaper for him to rent a billboard,” Grant said.
https://www.foxnews.com/world/businessmans-balloon-stunt-is-a-bust-gets-him-busted