Chinese Free British Radio Operator . Hong Kong ; Robert Ford , left , the radio operator captured by the Chinese when they invaded Tibet in 1950 , is seen at the first press conference he gave here after being released by the Chinese . With him , right , is Hong Kong Government Public Relations Officer , JL Murray . Ford , 32 , was released from the RAF in 1948 at the special request of the Tibetan Government so he could superintend a chain of radio warning posts along the Chinese frontier . He was caught when trying to get his equipment away on a mule . He was tried by a People ' s Court on various charges , including one of poisoning a Tibetan monk . 31 May 1955