The authorities had earlier picked up 53 North Koreans for being in the country without valid work permits. They are expected to be deported soon.

Deputy Home Minister Masir Kujat told The Borneo Post yesterday that locating the 87 North Koreans was the top priority of the police and the Immigration Department.

“For the North Korean workers who have valid working permits and documents, if they want to go back, they can be sent back. The question now is whether their employers are willing to let them go,” he said.

There are 36 North Koreans holding working permits in the state.

It was recently revealed that 176 North Koreans were working in the construction and mining sectors in the state but that 140 had been staying here as illegal workers.

On March 7, police and immigration officers detained 37 of them at Kuala Tatau and on March 13, another 16 were detained in Lawas, The Borneo Post reported.

The North Korean workers had kept a low profile in Sarawak but the murder of Kim Jong Nam in Kuala Lumpur on Feb 13 has brought attention to them, especially following a diplomatic row between Malaysia and North Korea.