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 near a Coconut Grove marina on Tuesday.

The video posted by MMG Outboard Division, a group who says they "delight ourselves on protecting and spreading consciousness on the beautiful waters we get to name home," was shot simply after 4 p.m. at Bayshore Landing 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 had been ignored and 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 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 environment.

“As a community, we share the duty to guard our surroundings," Miami-Dade Police Director George A. Perez said in a statement. "I am extraordinarily proud of 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 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 vital it's to protect the environment," he said.

Cloud Nine, an event planning firm, also deflected responsibility in a statement on Instagram.

"Our balloon vendor adorned the boat and left. We adorned the pier, finished the proposal, and cleaned up like we always do. We're by no means in charge of removing balloon decorations," the statement read partially.

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

"I used to be fairly upset about it, this is our bay, this is our livelihood," Bruna mentioned. "I was here after they were setting them up after which initially I didn't really suppose a lot of it but I suppose as the day was completed and they began popping away and letting all of them go into the water I used to be shocked."

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

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

Officials with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said balloons will be mistaken for food by sea turtles and different marine animals, and if eaten, can lead to internal injury, hunger, and death.

Balloon releases have been unlawful in Florida since 1989.