A man whose body was found in the Philippines in July has been positively identified as South Korean, a South Korean official said Friday.

   The official in the South Korean Embassy in the Philippines said the embassy has received confirmation from South Korean police that fingerprints of the body belonged to a South Korean man.

   The official identified the victim only by his family name Lee aged 45.

   Lee's body was found with a gunshot wound in his neck in Malabon, a northern suburb of Manila, in late July.

   The confirmation brought to 10 the number of South Koreans killed in the Philippines this year.

   In April, a South Korean female college student was found dead in the Philippines, a month after she was kidnapped in Manila while on her way to meet her friend, according to South Korea's foreign ministry.

   Concerns about the safety of South Korean residents and travelers have arisen in recent months due to a flurry of South Korean deaths in the Philippines, mostly driven by profit motives.

   The Philippines is home to about 80,000 South Korean residents, including 30,000 students. (Yonhap)