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 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 gaggle who says they "pride ourselves on defending and spreading consciousness on the beautiful waters we get to name house," was shot just after 4 p.m. at Bayshore Touchdown Marina.

Two people 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 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 individuals on a boat popping balloons into the ocean. NBC 6's Jamie Guirola reviews

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

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

“As a group, we share the responsibility to guard our surroundings," Miami-Dade Police Director George A. Perez said in a press release. "I am extraordinarily pleased with our Illegal Dumping Unit, for his or her 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 stories, saying he was not answerable 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 occasion planning company, additionally deflected responsibility in a press release on Instagram.

"Our balloon vendor adorned the boat and left. We adorned the pier, finished the proposal, and cleaned up like we at all times do. We're never in charge of removing balloon decorations," the assertion read partially.

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

"I was fairly upset about it, this is our bay, this is our livelihood," Bruna stated. "I used to be right here when they had been setting them up after which initially I did not really assume a lot of it but I assume as the day was carried out and they started popping away and letting all of them go into the water I was shocked."

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

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

Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Fee mentioned balloons will be mistaken for food by sea turtles and other marine animals, and if eaten, can lead to inner injury, starvation, and dying.

Balloon releases have been illegal in Florida since 1989.