A Chinese man jailed in his home country years ago for mocking Chinese leader Xi Jinping has fled China to South Korea on a jet ski, a South Korean activist said today.

The Chinese activist made a journey of more than 300 kilometers on a 1,800 cubic meter jet ski wearing a life jacket and helmet and was picked up by the South Korean coast guard on August 16

The coast guard did not name the 30-year-old man, who was taken into custody in the western South Korean coastal city of Incheon. However, as he announced, the activist brought with him a telescope, a compass and five cans of gasoline.

South Korean activist Lee Dae-seon identified the man as Kwon Pyong.

Li said that in 2016 the man was jailed in China for posting a selfie on social media that showed him wearing a T-shirt with slogans mocking President Xi’s face.

“It seems that he decided to escape because he was under political pressure,” Lee said, adding that he visited Kwon at a detention center on Tuesday.

Kwon appeared to be in good health after his jet ski trip, which South Korean media reported lasted 14 hours, Lee said.

US-based radio station Radio Free Asia reported that Kwon had been jailed in 2017 for “using words, photos and videos to insult and smear the government of this country and the socialist system” on social media.

According to a South Korean coast guard official, the man made no mention of an asylum claim during the interrogation.