Local police prevented mainland Chinese law enforcement officers from towing a suspected smuggler’s speedboat out of Hong Kong waters following an incident on Monday in which that vessel and another belonging to Zhuhai authorities both ran aground on Lantau Island, according to a force insider.

Hong Kong marine police officers were deployed to the scene after receiving a report from a resident at around 5.45pm on Monday that two speedboats were grounded on a rocky beach near Nam Chung in Tai O, about 4km from the maritime boundary with the mainland.

One of the vessels was a Zhuhai Municipal Public Security Bureau interceptor craft fitted with five outboard engines, while the other was the suspected smuggler’s speedboat, outfitted with six. A third vessel, a patrol boat belonging to the Zhuhai security bureau, was also found at the scene.

By the time Hong Kong officers arrived, the interceptor, having apparently dislodged itself from the beach, was attempting to tow the smuggler’s boat away.

“The mainland officers ceased their action immediately upon being notified that they were inside Hong Kong waters and could not exercise their jurisdiction,” the source said on Wednesday.

The Zhuhai interceptor, which had four officers aboard, had been engaged in a high-speed pursuit with the smuggler in mainland waters before running aground, he added.

“The two speedboats were running in parallel during the sea chase. We were told that the smuggler’s boat kept veering towards the officers’ speedboat, which had to keep swerving to avoid a collision and entered Hong Kong waters,” he said.

The source estimated it would take about two minutes for such a high-powered vessel to reach the beach from the maritime boundary.

After running aground, the mainland suspect abandoned his boat and ran ashore, according to police. No smuggled goods were found on board.

Another police source said officers from the force’s operations wing had been informed by their Zhuhai counterparts about the incident.

No one was injured in the incident, and the two mainland vessels returned to Chinese waters the same evening, according to the force.

Hong Kong police subsequently seized the abandoned speedboat and launched a search by air and land for the suspected smuggler. About three hours later, police arrested a 46-year-old mainland man on a hillside at Nam Chung Tsuen on suspicion of illegally entering the city.

The second source said the mainland suspect fit the description of the man who abandoned the speedboat and ran ashore.

Hong Kong and Guangdong police ramped up cooperation on combating cross-border smuggling after a local officer was killed during a maritime operation last month.

Senior Inspector Lam Yuen-yee died at sea after she and three colleagues were thrown overboard on September 25 when their vessel was rammed by a turbocharged speedboat they were trying to intercept just after crossing into mainland waters.

Earlier this month, members of the Guangdong Provincial Public Security Department arrested two men, aged 31 and 35, in connection with Lam’s death.

At a Legislative Council question and answer session on Wednesday, Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung revealed that eight employees from the city’s disciplined forces had been suspended for allegedly ridiculing Lam’s death.

He said authorities would conduct criminal investigations into the eight, and if no crimes were found to have been committed, they would face internal disciplinary hearings.

“I am disappointed and angry that members of our disciplined forces would have committed such acts,” he said.

Police confiscated seven speedboats and arrested a teenager in an anti-smuggling operation on Lantau on Wednesday.

As part of the ongoing crackdown on smuggling activities, anti-triad officers arrested a 17-year-old boy at around 11am on Wednesday at an outdoor car park on Lantau used by criminals to store speedboats involved in cross-border runs.

Police seized seven speedboats and 12 outboard engines at the site, along with other equipment. Police said the haul had an estimated value of HK$5 million (US$643,000).

Officers arrested the teenager on suspicion of construction of a vessel for the purpose of smuggling. Police said the suspect was in charge of the site, and an investigation suggested he had a triad background. According to police, the operation was continuing and further arrests were possible.