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 gaggle who says they "pleasure ourselves on protecting and spreading consciousness on the beautiful waters we get to call residence," was shot just 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 have 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 reviews

Miami-Dade Police said Wednesday night that they arrested one man and handed out nine 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 accountability to protect our environment," Miami-Dade Police Director George A. Perez stated 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 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 heart out and say how necessary it is to guard our environment," he stated.

Cloud Nine, an event planning company, also deflected responsibility in a press release on Instagram.

"Our balloon vendor adorned the boat and left. We adorned the pier, completed the proposal, and cleaned up like we always do. We are by no means accountable for eradicating balloon decorations," the assertion learn in part.

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

"I used to be fairly upset about it, that is our bay, that is our livelihood," Bruna stated. "I used to be here once they were setting them up after which initially I didn't actually think a lot of it however I guess because the day was done and they began popping away and letting them all go into the water I was shocked."

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

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

Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Fee stated balloons will be mistaken for meals by sea turtles and other marine animals, and if eaten, can lead to inside harm, hunger, and loss of life.

Balloon releases have been unlawful in Florida since 1989.