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

A man has been arrested after cellphone video captured what seemed to be a number of 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 "pleasure ourselves on protecting and spreading consciousness on the attractive waters we get to call house," was shot simply after 4 p.m. at Bayshore Touchdown Marina.

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

"As we handed them and expressed our disagreement, we had been ignored they usually continued popping away with no care on this planet," the group posted in their message.

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

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

The person was identified as 29-year-old David Torres-Bocanegra. He was charged with reckless disregard for the setting.

“As a group, we share the responsibility to guard the environment," Miami-Dade Police Director George A. Perez stated in a statement. "I am extremely happy with 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 may propose to his girlfriend, responded to the criticisms on his Instagram tales, saying he was not chargeable for the balloon popping.

"First off, I want to put my coronary heart out and say how vital it is to guard our surroundings," he said.

Cloud 9, an event planning firm, additionally deflected duty in an announcement on Instagram.

"Our balloon vendor adorned the boat and left. We decorated the pier, completed the proposal, and cleaned up like we at all times do. We are never in command of eradicating balloon decorations," the statement read partially.

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 right here once they were setting them up and then initially I did not actually assume a lot of it however I suppose as the day was finished they usually began popping away and letting them all go into the water I used to be shocked."

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

"I discussed to them,' are you guys severe, is that this something you are going to do right now?' [They] kind of just blew me off, ignored me," Bruna mentioned. "It was horrifying to see what they were doing to the marine life and the waterways by just dumping all of those balloons into the water."

Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Fee stated balloons may be mistaken for food by sea turtles and different marine animals, and if eaten, can result in inner damage, starvation, and dying.

Balloon releases have been illegal in Florida since 1989.