Woman Is Convicted of Killing Her Children and Leaving Them in Suitcases

Asia Pacific|Woman Is Convicted of Killing Her Children and Leaving Them in Suitcases

A jury in New Zealand convicted a woman on Tuesday of murdering her two children, ages 6 and 8, hiding their bodies in suitcases and then fleeing to her native South Korea.

The verdict against Hakyung Lee, a New Zealand citizen, came after a nearly two-week long trial at the Auckland High Court, and nearly three years after she was arrested in South Korea. She is likely to be sentenced to life in prison.

During the trial, Natalie Walker, a prosecutor, said that Ms. Lee admitted to have “caused the deaths of her children” by giving them nortriptyline, an antidepressant, in 2018. The precise timing and cause of deaths remain uncertain, according to medical experts. Ms. Lee also admitted to wrapping the children in three layers of plastic bags then shoving them into suitcases, which she wrapped in more plastic bags and sealed with duct tape.

But Ms. Lee, 45, had pleaded not guilty, citing mental illness. In her defense, she argued that after her husband died in 2017, she became mentally unwell and decided to kill herself and her children. During the trial, her lawyer said that, after killing her children, Ms. Lee unsuccessfully tried to end her own life. She eventually fled to South Korea.

The investigation into Ms. Lee began in 2022. Her children’s remains had been found after the suitcases were sold as part of an online auction of items from an Auckland storage facility. The buyers alerted the authorities after discovering the bodies, which police believed could have been stored for as long as four years.

South Korean police used medical records and phone numbers to locate Ms. Lee. They arrested her in a residence in the southeastern city of Ulsan in September 2022 and she was extradited to New Zealand soon after.

Her sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 26.