Taiwan’s coast guard says it has detained a Chinese man who it believes had attempted to enter Taiwan illegally.
The Coast Guard Administration said on Saturday that a rubber boat with the man on board was found in the morning about 100 meters off the coast of New Taipei City.
Officials said he was taken to hospital for symptoms of dehydration. They quoted him as saying he had debts in China and wanted to start a new life in Taiwan.
The coast guard said the man’s 3.6-meter-long boat was too small to be detected by its radar system. Officials also denied human error had contributed to the undetected intrusion.
The incident occurred as Taiwanese authorities are on raised alert against Chinese nationals who try to smuggle themselves into Taiwan.
In June, a former captain of the Chinese navy entered the river that runs through New Taipei City in a small boat.