Mainland Chinese authorities have approved the arrests of 12 Hongkongers who were captured while allegedly fleeing to Taiwan via speedboat, with two of them facing accusations of organizing the escape attempt.

The People’s Procuratorate of Yantian District in Shenzhen said on Wednesday that it had formally approved the arrests. The 12 defendants had been held at Yantian District Detention Centre since they were captured on Aug. 23, and will likely remain there as the investigation continues.

Two of the suspects were arrested on suspicion of “organizing an illegal border crossing,” which under mainland Chinese law comes with a maximum penalty of seven years in jail. They were identified by their Mandarin surnames, Qiao and Deng, which likely referred to Quinn Moon and Tang Kai-yin.

The remaining 10 were arrested for making illegal border crossings, which can result in imprisonments of up to a year.

According to the Hong Kong government, the 12 took a speedboat at around 7 a.m. on Aug. 23 bound for Taiwan to “evade criminal responsibility” in the city. They were arrested by the Chinese coast guard after crossing into mainland waters.

Police added that the speedboat was arranged by a smuggling syndicate and departed from Po Toi O pier in Sai Kung. The 12 Hongkongers had allegedly paid the syndicate to assist their escape, and one of them was in charge of steering the boat, according to the police.

Asked about rumors that Tang was the boat driver, Tang’s brother declined to comment.

Human rights lawyer Lu Siwei previously said that Oct. 1 would be a pivotal date in the case, as criminal suspects could be detained in China for up to 37 days before being formally arrested.

If the People’s Procuratorate approved the arrests, there would be a strong chance the suspects would be found guilty, he said. If the arrests were not approved, the suspects might be released on bail.

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