Related videos:
Jorden Stephen Perozo, 34 years old, was arrested on Monday after slashing an enormous inflatable FIFA ball with a sharp object at the intersection of 71st Street and Rue Vendome, in the North Beach area of Miami Beach.
The damaged ball was part of the installation “Arena de las Naciones,” an exhibition of 48 giant balls, each 4.8 meters tall, placed by the city of Miami Beach to celebrate the FIFA World Cup 2026, and it had a theme of Uruguay.
After committing the act, Perozo fled the scene on an electric scooter.
However, the Real-Time Crime Center in Miami Beach tracked him using security cameras to a Nissan sedan parked near 81st Street and Hawthorne Avenue, and a witness later identified him in a lineup.
According to Telemundo, when questioned, Perozo initially told investigators that he "was intoxicated and remembered nothing," but later provided a full confession and admitted that he did it "because he thought it was funny."
He also expressed remorse to the authorities.
The charge brought against him was criminal damage to property, a serious offense since the damages exceeded thousands of dollars.
This Wednesday, Detective Pablo González from the Miami Beach Police testified in the bail court that the cost of damages to the ball amounted to around 3,125 dollars: “I was informed that it was approximately 3,125 dollars,” he stated.
The judge set Perozo's bail at $2,500, although he warned that the defendant was already out on bail for a prior felony related to fleeing and evading the police, resisting an officer without violence, and disorderly conduct, emphasized Telemundo.
The incident occurs amidst the global excitement of the World Cup in Miami, a city that hosts seven tournament matches at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, including a quarter-final match and the playoff for third place.
The destroyed ball precisely represented Uruguay, the team that made its debut in Miami on Monday against Saudi Arabia and is scheduled for a second match on June 21 against Cape Verde.
The "Arena of Nations" features a ball representing each of the 48 teams qualified for the tournament and will be displayed at various locations in Miami Beach until July 20, 2026, as part of a city that anticipates welcoming around one million visitors during the world championship festivities.
Filed under: