Three handicapped children - two boys and a girl - were thrown overboard from a motorised sampan in shallow waters off Sha Kiu Tsuen, Tsim Bei Tsui, last night when police officers approached.

The two boys were arrested on a remote beach, while the girl was rescued from the water. The children, aged from 10 to 13, could hardly speak and were treated at Tuen Mun Hospital. They were arrested with an illegal immigrant who said he came from Guangxi province and had paid $4,000 to a snakehead for the trip to Hong Kong. He said he did not know any of the children. The snakehead escaped.