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

A person has been arrested after cellphone video captured what gave the impression 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 "pride ourselves on defending and spreading consciousness on the gorgeous waters we get to name 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 passed them and expressed our disagreement, we have been ignored and so they continued popping away with no care on the earth," 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 stories

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 atmosphere.

“As a community, we share the accountability to guard our surroundings," Miami-Dade Police Director George A. Perez said in a statement. "I'm extraordinarily proud of our Unlawful 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 may suggest to his girlfriend, responded to the criticisms on his Instagram tales, saying he was not liable for the balloon popping.

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

Cloud 9, 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, finished the proposal, and cleaned up like we at all times do. We're never in charge of eradicating balloon decorations," the statement read in part.

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 said. "I used to be here when they have been setting them up after which initially I did not actually think a lot of it however I guess because the day was performed they usually started popping away and letting all of them go into the water I was shocked."

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

"I mentioned to them,' are you guys severe, is this one thing you are going to do proper now?' [They] kind of simply blew me off, ignored me," Bruna mentioned. "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 Fee mentioned balloons could be mistaken for food by sea turtles and different marine animals, and if eaten, can result in inside damage, starvation, and death.

Balloon releases have been illegal in Florida since 1989.