WEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - Miami-Dade Police announced that they have arrested and charged a second person in connection to the illegal dumping of party balloons in Biscayne Bay.
Martina Gaspoz, 26, was booked Friday morning and is being charged with willful disregard of the environment, a felony.
On Wednesday, police arrested 29-year-old David Torres-Bocanegra. He was charged with reckless disregard for the environment, also a felony.
Bocanegra on Thursday bonded out of the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in West Miami-Dade.
When asked if he cared about marine life, Torres-Bocanegra responded, “Of course.” When asked to talk about the incident, he remained silent.
Detectives said Torres-Bocanegra and Gaspov confessed to bursting over 50 balloons that landed in the water near Bayshore Landing Marina in Coconut Grove, Tuesday afternoon.
A picture showed Gaspoz posing in front of the balloon display before the balloons were popped or deflated.
“Gotta love Miami charter boats,” said Miami Maritime Group’s Esteban Bruna as he recorded cellphone video of the balloons being popped. “Let’s throw a party, pop every single balloon on the bow of the boat and just right into the water.”
Wednesday evening, a popular fitness instructor posted a series of videos to the Instagram account @tomrivas where he claimed to have chartered the vessel and said the crew’s careless actions were not his fault.
“We did not even see this happening in the time that this was going on. We were inside,” he said. “I think it’s so important to take care of our environment, and things like this certainly need to be addressed.”
Since Bocanegra’s arrest, police have issued over 10 civil citations to other individuals involved in the crime, totaling over $25,000.
Detectives said Gaspoz told them she felt ashamed about what they did, adding that she’s also seen the cellphone video that went viral.
Copyright 2024 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.