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 bunch who says they "satisfaction ourselves on defending and spreading awareness on the attractive waters we get to call residence," was shot simply 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 they usually 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 mentioned Wednesday night 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 environment.

“As a neighborhood, we share the responsibility to guard our environment," Miami-Dade Police Director George A. Perez said in a press release. "I am extremely happy 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 could suggest to his girlfriend, responded to the criticisms on his Instagram tales, saying he was not accountable for the balloon popping.

"First off, I wish to put my coronary heart out and say how important it is to guard our surroundings," he stated.

Cloud Nine, an occasion planning company, also deflected responsibility in an announcement on Instagram.

"Our balloon vendor decorated the boat and left. We decorated the pier, finished the proposal, and cleaned up like we all the time do. We're by no means in command of removing balloon decorations," the statement read partly.

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

"I used to be 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 didn't actually assume a lot of it however I guess as the day was accomplished they usually started popping away and letting them all go into the water I used to be shocked."

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

"I discussed to them,' are you guys serious, is that this one thing you are going to do right now?' [They] sort of just 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 just dumping all of those balloons into the water."

Officers with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Fee stated balloons could be mistaken for meals by sea turtles and other marine animals, and if eaten, can result in inside harm, starvation, and demise.

Balloon releases have been unlawful in Florida since 1989.