Suspect in case of two children found in suitcases to be extradited to New Zealand

A Korean woman in her 40s, who is a suspect in the case of two children's bodies found inside suitcases in New Zealand in August, walks out of Ulsan Metropolitan Police Agency on Sept. 15, 2022.[YONHAP]

The Seoul High Court on Friday ruled in favor of extraditing a suspect to New Zealand, for her alleged role in the deaths of two children who were found dead in suitcases.

The suspect, believed to be the mother of the two children, was arrested in Ulsan on Sept. 15 on charges of murder after a manhunt that began in August.

The Seoul High Court granted the extradition after the Ministry of Justice received a request from the New Zealand Ministry of Justice.

The bodies of the two children, who were believed to be aged five and 10 at the time of their deaths, were discovered by a family who purchased two suitcases from an online auction at a storage facility in South Auckland in August, according to New Zealand news reports.

Authorities estimate the bodies had been in the suitcases for three to four years.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]