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Korean mother whose children were found dead in suitcases stands trial in New Zealand

Prosecutors allege the woman killed her two young children in 2018, shortly after her husband’s death, using sleeping medication

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New Zealand police and forensics teams at the property where the children’s remains were discovered inside suitcases in 2022. Photo: NZME
SCMP’s Asia desk
A woman accused of killing her two young children and hiding their bodies in suitcases stood trial in New Zealand on Monday, in a case that has transfixed the country since the remains were discovered in 2022.

Lee Hak-yung, 44, appeared at the Auckland High Court. A Korean-born New Zealander, she is accused of killing her children – six-year-old Minu Jo and eight-year-old Yuna Jo – in 2018, shortly after the death of her husband from cancer.

The children’s remains lay undiscovered for years until the contents of a storage locker in Papatoetoe, South Auckland, were sold at auction. The unsuspecting buyers brought the suitcases home and found the bodies wrapped and hidden inside.
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Lee had returned to South Korea in 2018, where she lived under a new identity. She was arrested in Ulsan in September 2022 after Interpol issued a red notice and was extradited to New Zealand two months later at the request of the police.
A woman, later identified as Lee Hak-yung, sits inside a police car in South Korea after her arrest in 2022. She was later extradited to New Zealand. Photo: Newsis/AP
A woman, later identified as Lee Hak-yung, sits inside a police car in South Korea after her arrest in 2022. She was later extradited to New Zealand. Photo: Newsis/AP

At Monday’s hearing, local media reported that Lee remained silent when asked by the judge how she would plead, with her silence ultimately recorded as a “not guilty” plea. She has chosen to represent herself during the trial, though the court has appointed two lawyers as standby counsel.

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