DUSHANBE, February 1, 2015, Asia-Plus -- Radio Liberty’s Russian Service reports 34 illegal labor migrants from Central Asia have been detained in the city of St. Petersburg.

The St. Petersburg city prosecutor''s office said its representatives and Federal Migration Service officials said the workers -- from Uzbekistan and Tajikistan -- were found at a construction site on January 30.

An official statement said the illegal immigrants tried to escape security officers by pulling down some scaffolding and running from the scene but were chased and captured.

A court ruled that those detained must be deported to their countries and pay a 5,000 rubles ($75) fine each.

The court also ruled to that three construction companies responsible for hiring the illegal workers would be prosecuted.

There are hundreds of thousands of Central Asians and workers from the Caucasus living and working illegally in Russia.

Russian authorities have intensified raids to locate and deport illegal migrants in recent months.