Arrest Made in Balloon Littering Investigation at Coconut Grove Marina – NBC 6 South Florida

A person has been arrested after cellphone video captured what appeared to be several boaters popping balloons and letting the trash fall into the water near a Coconut Grove marina on Tuesday.

The video posted by MMG Outboard Division, a gaggle who says they "satisfaction ourselves on defending and spreading awareness on the gorgeous waters we get to name house," was shot simply after 4 p.m. at Bayshore Touchdown Marina.

Two folks onboard the boat are seen popping balloons and letting them fall into the water.

"As we handed them and expressed our disagreement, we were ignored they usually continued popping away with no care in the world," the group posted of their message.

Miami-Dade police have made an arrest after cellphone video surfaced of individuals on a ship popping balloons into the ocean. NBC 6's Jamie Guirola studies

Miami-Dade Police said Wednesday night time that they arrested one man and handed out 9 civil citations.

The man was recognized as 29-year-old David Torres-Bocanegra. He was charged with reckless disregard for the surroundings.

“As a community, we share the duty to guard the environment," Miami-Dade Police Director George A. Perez said in a press release. "I am extremely pleased with our Illegal Dumping Unit, for their thorough investigation and swift conclusion to this case."

David Torres-Bocanegra

Tom Rivas, who rented the boat so he might propose to his girlfriend, responded to the criticisms on his Instagram tales, saying he was not answerable for the balloon popping.

"First off, I wish to put my coronary heart out and say how vital it is to protect our surroundings," he mentioned.

Cloud 9, an event planning firm, also deflected accountability in a statement on Instagram.

"Our balloon vendor embellished the boat and left. We embellished the pier, finished the proposal, and cleaned up like we all the time do. We are by no means in charge of removing balloon decorations," the statement read in part.

Esteban Bruna, a yacht broker, shot the cellphone video.

"I used to be pretty upset about it, this is our bay, that is our livelihood," Bruna mentioned. "I used to be here once they had been setting them up after which initially I didn't really think a lot of it however I guess because the day was executed and they started popping away and letting all of them go into the water I used to be shocked."

One witness mentioned the balloons might have been part of a marriage proposal. Bruna said he confronted the people.

"I mentioned to them,' are you guys severe, is this one thing you're going to do right now?' [They] type of simply blew me off, ignored me," Bruna said. "It was horrifying to see what they have been doing to the marine life and the waterways by simply dumping all of those balloons into the water."

Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission stated balloons could be mistaken for meals by sea turtles and different marine animals, and if eaten, can lead to inner damage, hunger, and death.

Balloon releases have been illegal in Florida since 1989.