Twelve arrested at sea while trying to flee to Taiwan from Hong Kong

Chinese coastguard stopped a speedboat on Sunday suspected of an illegal border crossing

More than 10 Hong Kong residents, including an activist charged under the city's punitive national security law, have been detained by China's coastguard while trying to flee to Taiwan, according to reports.

China's coastguard released a statement on Weibo saying that on Sunday at 9am, authorities in Guangdong tracked down a speedboat suspected of an illegal border crossing. The notice, posted on Wednesday evening, said more than 10 people had been arrested including two suspects surnamed Li and Deng.