TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Chinese man said that he swam 10 hours from China's Fujian Province to Taiwan's Matsu Islands to "seek freedom."

At 8 a.m. on Monday (July 24), a Chinese national in his 40s sought assistance from tourists near the Qinbi Broadcasting Station in Beigan Township on Beigan Island, the second largest island in Matsu, officially Lienchiang County, reported CNA. He said he had been stung by a bee and was in great pain.

The tourists notified county authorities, who arrived at the scene and found that the man was an illegal Chinese immigrant. He was sent to the Beigan health center for treatment, and his injuries were not deemed serious.

The man had brought with him dry food, clothing, medicine, and Renminbi, according to officials. He told them that he had swum 10 hours from Huangqi Peninsula in China's Fujian Province to Taiwan's Matsu Islands to "seek freedom."

According to Google Maps, the straight-line distance from Huangqi Peninsula to Matsu's Beigan Township is approximately 12 kilometers. The individual was transferred by authorities to the Lienchiang District Prosecutors Office to be investigated for breaching the Act Governing Relations Between the People of the Taiwan Area and the Mainland Area (臺灣地區與大陸地區人民關係條例).