Foreign stowaways comprised more than 80 percent of the total detained in Guangdong province in the first three months of the year, according to a statement from the Guangdong Department of Public Security.

Most of the foreigners came from South Asia.

Border police detained 691 stowaways after cracking 84 major illegal immigration cases in the first quarter of the year.

The number of stowaways detained in Guangdong from January to March rose by 86 percent year-on-year, the statement said.

Police in the Zhuhai Special Economic Zone detained 80 foreign stowaways when they cracked a major illegal immigration case on Feb 17. Fifty-four men and 26 women were detained, with the youngest being only 19.

The growing number of foreign stowaways indicates that Guangdong, which borders the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, is still a hot destination for them, the statement said.