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Police have arrested two foreign tourists inside the departure restricted area of Hong Kong International Airport just six hours after they allegedly cut security fencing to break into the Chai Wan MTR depot and spray-painted large graffiti murals onto a parked train carriage.
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The two suspects, aged 30 and 40, were intercepted at the boarding gates on Wednesday evening as they prepared to board separate flights bound for the United States and Australia, following a swift investigation aided by the police force's "Project Hawkeye" surveillance camera network.
High-security intrusion and escape over three-meter wall
The incident came to light at around 2pm yesterday when MTR depot personnel conducting routine track inspections discovered two massive graffiti pieces, each measuring approximately 1 meter by 5 meters, sprayed across the side of a stabled train carriage.
During the inspection, staff spotted two suspicious men wearing reflective high-visibility vests near the vandalized train.
Upon noticing the depot workers, the intruders quickly scaled a three-meter-tall perimeter boundary wall and fled toward the nearby Heng Fa Chuen residential estate.
Responding officers examined the perimeter wall and discovered that sections of anti-intrusion security wiring along the top had been deliberately snipped.
Police seized an assortment of tools left behind at the scene, including nine spray paint cans, a wooden ladder, and two high-visibility vests.
Airport interception within six hours of break-in
Recognizing railway depots as critical transport infrastructure, the Eastern District Crime Squad took over the investigation and conducted immediate intelligence analysis, tracking the suspects' movements across public surveillance cameras and the Smartview system.
Investigators quickly determined that the suspects had headed straight to Hong Kong International Airport to flee the territory.
At around 8pm the same evening, detectives tracked down and apprehended both men inside the airport's departure restricted area before their flights departed, seizing the clothing worn during the crime from their checked luggage.
The suspects, who identified themselves as a renovation worker and an e-commerce manager respectively, are currently being detained on suspicion of criminal damage.
Severe penalties for trespassing and railway vandalism
Police cautioned both local residents and visiting tourists that criminal damage is a grave offense under the Crimes Ordinance, carrying a maximum sentence of up to ten years' imprisonment upon conviction.
Authorities reiterated that trespassing into railway premises is also strictly prohibited, emphasizing that unauthorized entry jeopardizes personal safety and threatens the integrity of essential public transportation services, warning that law enforcement will act decisively against any offenders.
