Japan's coastguard on Sunday arrested the 47-year-old captain of a Chinese fishing boat on alleged charges of breaking Japanese fishing laws, Jiji press reported.???

A staff with the Chinese consulate general in Nagasaki confirmed the report, saying that Japan has detained Chinese captain Zhang Tianxiong, 11 crew members and their boat.

The coastguard's regional headquarters in the city of Nagasaki said its patrol ship?discovered two Chinese fishing boats in waters off Japan's southwestern coast, the report said.

After the two?boats rejected its order to stop for on-board inspections, the patrol ship chased one of the two for nearly four and half an hours, said the coastguard.