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 a number of 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 bunch who says they "pleasure ourselves on defending and spreading awareness on the gorgeous waters we get to name home," was shot just after 4 p.m. at Bayshore Landing 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 and so 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 stated Wednesday evening 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 accountability to protect the environment," Miami-Dade Police Director George A. Perez stated in an announcement. "I'm extraordinarily 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 responsible for the balloon popping.

"First off, I need to put my heart out and say how essential it's to protect the environment," he stated.

Cloud Nine, an event planning company, additionally deflected accountability 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 all the time do. We're by no means in command of eradicating balloon decorations," the assertion learn partially.

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

"I used to be pretty upset about it, this is our bay, that is our livelihood," Bruna mentioned. "I was right here after they have been setting them up and then initially I didn't actually assume a lot of it but I assume as the day was performed they usually began popping away and letting all of them go into the water I used to be shocked."

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

"I discussed to them,' are you guys serious, is this one thing you are going to do proper now?' [They] form of just blew me off, ignored me," Bruna stated. "It was horrifying to see what they have been 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 said balloons may be mistaken for food by sea turtles and different marine animals, and if eaten, can result in inside injury, starvation, and demise.

Balloon releases have been unlawful in Florida since 1989.