Mum breaks silence after being charged with murdering two children found in suitcases in New Zealand

The woman arrested over the death of two children whose bodies were found in suitcases has been discovered “hiding in an apartment”.

A 42-year-old woman, believed to be the mother of two children whose remains were found in suitcases in New Zealand, covers her head with a large brown coat at Ulsan Central Police Station after her arrest early morning in South Korea's southeastern city of Ulsan on September 15, 2022, before being transfered to Seoul to face extradition proceedings, police confirmed. (Photo by STRINGER / various sources / AFP) / - South Korea OUT / NO ARCHIVES - RESTRICTED TO SUBSCRIPTION USE

The 42-year-old woman arrested over the death of two children whose bodies were found in suitcases was discovered “hiding in an apartment” in a South Korean city early today.

Images in local media showed the woman, who has not been identified by police in South Korea or New Zealand, being led out of the Ulsan police station by plain-clothed investigators, covering her head with a large brown coat.

The NZ Herald reported the two children who died were a girl and a boy born in about 2009 and 2012. Their genders or date of birth have not been reported until now.

Korean police also later released a statement confirming further details about the arrest.

“Police arrested the suspect at an apartment in Ulsan on Thursday following a stake-out with tips on her whereabouts and CCTV footage,” Seoul’s National Police Agency said.

“The suspect is accused by the New Zealand Police of having murdered two of her children, aged seven and 10 then, in around 2018 in the Auckland area,” the statement read.

“She‘s been found to have arrived in South Korea after the crime and has been in hiding ever since.”

The woman was apprehended at 1am Korean time (4am NZ time) in Ulsan, a city on Korea‘s southeast coast, according to the local news channel YTN.

While being transported to Seoul by police, the woman was asked by journalists about the allegations, the Yonhap News Agency reported.

“I didn‘t do it,” the woman, who covered her head with a jacket, said repeatedly.

Ulsan has a population of 1.1 million people. Chosun.com reported that the woman arrived in Korea in July 2018.

The 42-year-old woman arrested over the death of two children whose bodies were found in suitcases was discovered ‘hiding in an apartment’ in a South Korean city early today.

After New Zealand Police issued the arrest warrant for the woman, the Seoul High Court granted an extradition arrest warrant for the woman.

Korean police plan to hand over the woman to Seoul Central District Prosecutors‘ Office and an extradition review will be conducted at Seoul High Court.

At this High Court hearing it will be decided if the woman will be extradited back to New Zealand.

Earlier today NZ Police confirmed today that the woman has been arrested over the alleged murder of the two young children whose remains were discovered in abandoned suitcases in Manurewa.

South Korean authorities arrested the woman today on a Korean arrest warrant pursuant to two charges of murder relating to the two young victims.

The arrest warrant was issued by the Korean Courts as a result of a request by NZ Police for an arrest warrant under the extradition treaty between New Zealand and the Republic of Korea (South Korea).

NZ Police have applied to have her extradited back to New Zealand to face the charges and have requested that she remains in custody while awaiting the completion of the extradition process.

Korean police plan to hand over the woman to Seoul Central District Prosecutors‘ Office and an extradition review will be conducted at Seoul High Court.

“To have someone in custody overseas within such a short period of time has all been down to the assistance of the Korean authorities and the co-ordination by our NZ Police Interpol staff,” police said in a statement today.

“Police would also like to acknowledge the overwhelming support from the public since the commencement of a very challenging investigation.

“As the matter is now before the courts, police are not in a position to make any further comment.”

Police would not divulge details about when the woman was due to appear in court or when they hoped she would be expected back in New Zealand, or even if the police would be travelling to South Korea for upcoming court appearances.

There are a “number of inquiries to be completed both in New Zealand and overseas”, NZ police said in a statement today.

An arrest warrant was issued by the Korean courts as a result of a request from authorities in New Zealand and South Korea.

The bodies of the children, aged between five and 10, were found by those who had unwittingly bought the suitcases from a South Auckland storage unit as part of an auction for abandoned goods.

Human remains were found stuffed inside multiple suitcases after a family purchased items from an abandoned storage unit. Picture: NZ Herald

The police investigation into the case – launched after the grisly find on August 11 at a Manurewa property – saw Interpol called in.

The children‘s bodies had likely been stored at the Papatoetoe Safe Store storage facility for three to four years before being discovered, Detective Inspector Tofilau Faamanuia Vaaelua said at the time.

The suitcases were bought by the Manurewa residents unwittingly as part of an online auction for an abandoned storage unit.

Police later confirmed the bodies of the children in the suitcases had likely been stored at the facility for three to four years before being discovered.

On August 22, the Korean National Police Agency confirmed a female relative of children had arrived in South Korea in 2018 and had no record of leaving the country since that year.

“We confirm that she is in South Korea and that she is a New Zealand national of Korean descent,” an official at the Korean National Police Agency said.

On August 26, NZ Police confirmed the remains of the two children had been identified, but due to a suppression order, they could not be named. However, other relatives of the children still living in New Zealand have been identified.

NZ Police confirmed the remains of the two children had been identified, but due to a suppression order, they could not be named. However, other relatives of the children still living in New Zealand have been identified.

NZ Police Association president Chris Cahill said he couldn‘t speak on details of the operational side of the arrest warrant for the 42-year-old woman - but acknowledged such investigations were intricate and rare.

NZ Police Association president Chris Cahill said he couldn‘t speak on details of the operational side of the arrest warrant for the 42-year-old woman - but acknowledged such investigations were intricate and rare.

“Obviously this will be a really complicated and in-depth investigation,” he said today.

“But an arrest shows that the police have put in some really hard yards and worked well with our international colleagues to get it to this stage.”

Cahill said such international arrests and extradition processes were an “unusual and rare event” for police.

“They‘re also difficult because every country has different rules so it’s not like there’s one international set of criteria that you have to meet,” Cahill said.

“So police have to understand the requirements for extradition under New Zealand law but also under the law of the [overseas] country. But also what evidential standard is required to reach in different countries.

“So it‘s not an easy process and different for every country you deal with.”

This article originally appeared in the NZ Herald and was reproduced with permission

Originally published as Mum breaks silence after being charged with murdering two children found in suitcases in New Zealand