Immigration officers are trying to catch ballroom dancing instructors from the mainland and eastern Europe who are earning up to $1,500 an hour working as private escorts for wealthy society women.
Undercover agents and video surveillance are being used in an attempt to infiltrate the close-knit ballroom dance community and catch the offenders, industry sources have told the South China Morning Post.
Officials have even hosted birthday parties in popular venues, including private dance halls and restaurants, as well as taking up ballroom dancing lessons in an ongoing effort to bust the rackets.
The covert operations are being conducted amid expressions of concern from the ballroom dancing community about large numbers of foreign dancing instructors from Europe and mainland China working illegally in Hong Kong.
The industry has called for greater government action to protect legitimate businesses.
A spokeswoman for the Immigration Department yesterday declined to comment or give any details about how many people had been arrested.