HONG KONG - The national security unit of the Hong Kong Police Force confirmed on Thursday that it arrested 11 people on suspicion of helping offenders to flee the city.

In a statement issued on Thursday evening, the police said they arrested eight men and three women, aged between 18 and 72 in various districts after an in-depth investigation.

"The arrested persons are being detained for further enquiries," the statement reads.

Daniel Wong Kwok-tung, a lawyer and Kowloon City district councilor, posted on social media that he was arrested on Thursday morning. Activist Willis Ho Kit-wang said in a social media post that her mother was arrested in relation to the case of the 12 fugitives.

Ten of the 12 fugitives were jailed for illegal border crossing on Dec 30 in Shenzhen, Guangdong province. They were intercepted in August 2020 by Chinese mainland coast guards when they tried to leave for Taiwan to escape prosecution in Hong Kong over their roles in the protest violence in 2019.