The body of a man with a metal tube containing photos of late North Korean leaders was found drifting in the Sea of Japan off Akita Prefecture, the Japan Coast Guard said.
The coast guard believes the corpse, found Sunday, is from North Korea. It was found around 100 meters off the Oga Peninsula wearing what appeared to be a lifesaving suit, the coast guard said.
A tube in the suit was found to contain photos of North Korean founder Kim Il Sung, and his son and former leader Kim Jong Il.
The discovery came after the partially decomposed body of a man wearing badges of the two North Korean leaders washed ashore Saturday on the coast of Itoigawa, Niigata Prefecture.
Identical alphabetical characters believed to be the name of a boat were printed on the lifesaving suits on both bodies, the coast guard said.
The dead man found Sunday afternoon was around 162 cm tall and wearing a jacket for cold weather and work clothing, while the body found Saturday was about 150 cm tall and had five U.S. dollar bills totaling $290, according to the coast guard.