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

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

The video posted by MMG Outboard Division, a group who says they "satisfaction ourselves on protecting and spreading awareness on the beautiful waters we get to call home," was shot just after 4 p.m. at Bayshore Landing Marina.

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

"As we passed them and expressed our disagreement, we were ignored and they continued popping away with no care on the earth," the group posted of their message.

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

Miami-Dade Police said Wednesday night 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 responsibility to guard our surroundings," Miami-Dade Police Director George A. Perez mentioned in a press release. "I'm extremely proud of our Unlawful Dumping Unit, for their thorough investigation and swift conclusion to this case."

David Torres-Bocanegra

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

"First off, I need to put my heart out and say how vital it is to guard our environment," he mentioned.

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

"Our balloon vendor decorated the boat and left. We decorated the pier, completed the proposal, and cleaned up like we always do. We're never in control of removing balloon decorations," the assertion learn partly.

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

"I was pretty upset about it, that is our bay, this is our livelihood," Bruna mentioned. "I was here once they had been setting them up and then initially I did not actually suppose a lot of it but I guess because the day was carried out and so they started popping away and letting them all go into the water I was shocked."

One witness stated the balloons could have been part of a wedding proposal. Bruna stated he confronted the individuals.

"I mentioned to them,' are you guys serious, is this one thing you're going to do proper now?' [They] kind of just blew me off, ignored me," Bruna said. "It was horrifying to see what they were doing to the marine life and the waterways by just dumping all of these balloons into the water."

Officers 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 result in internal harm, starvation, and demise.

Balloon releases have been illegal in Florida since 1989.