518
En Clair
HONG KONG TO COMMONWEALTH OFFICE (D.T.D.)
Telegram Unumbered
UNCLASSIFIED
Press.
RECEIVED IN
30
ARCHIVE September, 1967
300800 Attention Glover.
2 OCT1967
H
HWB 1/17
3
لنا
In Hong Kong, two off-duty Police Constables crossed the Hong Kong-China border by error yesterday evening. They are presumed to have been detained by The Chinese Army personnel.
The policemen crossed the border at the Man Kam To Bridge on a motorcycle shortly before six o'clock. Colleagues of the two men told police that the mishap occurred in the course of an off-duty outing in the New Territories.
The two constables whose names are being withheld were out for the day with a group of ten other constables and some friends.
The rest of the party were travelling in three private cars and the whole group drove through Sheung Shui on their way to a restaurant in Lok Ma Chau. The cars stopped at & filling station in Sheung Shui and the two men on the motor- cycle were seen to drive on ahead. Apparently they missed the turn-off towards Lok Ma Chau through Sheung Shud and instead drove straight up towards the border.
Being unfamiliar with the area they drove through the checkpoint on the Indus River where the barrier was open to admit other traffic. It is believed they mistook the chec- point for a temporary roadblock.
The two men were later seen by police near lan Kam To to drive across the bridge over the border.
On the other side of the bridge they were stopped by Chinese soldiers. Police observers saw them apparently explaining their mistake but after some time they were led away.
A Government spokesman said that no further news had been received of the two men. However it was presumed that they would be released as soon as it was realised that they had crossed by mistake.
In the urban areas, no bombs were found in Hong Kong, Kowloon yesterday.
The police carried out a series of eight searches to Left Wing Unions and private residential places towards the evening. Seventeen people have been detained for enquiries but no seizures were made.
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