South Korean‑born New Zealander sentenced to life after children’s bodies found in suitcases

A South Korean‑born New Zealand woman, Hakyung Lee, was sentenced to life in prison on Friday for the 2018 murders of her two young children, whose bodies were discovered packed in suitcases in an abandoned storage locker more than three years later, New Zealand media reported.

Lee, who is in her 40s, was convicted in September after admitting she killed the children, then aged 8 and 6. During the trial she entered a plea of not guilty by reason of insanity and represented herself, supported by two lawyers. The judge set a minimum non‑parole period of 17 years.

Judge: actions were “morally wrong”

Sentencing remarks published by New Zealand outlets quoted the judge, Mr. Venning, as saying, “You knew your actions were morally wrong … perhaps you could not bear to have your children around you as a constant reminder of your previous happy life.” The source did not identify Mr. Venning’s full title.

Prosecutors urged the court to impose the harshest sentence available, arguing there was no evidence Lee intended to kill herself at the time of the offences. Lee’s lawyers had asked for leniency, saying her mental health problems should weigh against a life term.

The killings and discovery

Court testimony described how, in 2018, Lee gave her two children an overdose of prescription medication, then wrapped their bodies in plastic and placed them in suitcases. The children’s father died of cancer in 2017.

The suitcases remained hidden until 2022, when a family sorting the contents of a storage locker they had purchased at an online auction discovered the remains. That discovery prompted a police murder investigation and, eventually, criminal charges against Lee.

Extradition and trial

Lee moved to South Korea in 2018. New Zealand authorities sought her return to face the charges and she was extradited in November 2022. She was tried months later and convicted in September after the court accepted that she had caused the deaths.

Throughout proceedings, the question of Lee’s mental state was central. She maintained a not‑guilty‑by‑reason‑of‑insanity plea, a defence that acknowledges the act while arguing the accused was legally insane and therefore not criminally responsible. Her legal team told the court that her psychiatric problems should mitigate punishment; prosecutors countered that the evidence did not support a finding that Lee lacked the capacity to know her actions were wrong.

Legal and social context

Life imprisonment is the most severe sentence available in New Zealand; the country abolished the death penalty for ordinary crimes in 1989. The court’s decision to impose life with a 17‑year non‑parole period reflects a balance judges must strike between punishment, public protection and the possibility of rehabilitation.

Cases involving a parent who kills children present courts with acute moral and legal dilemmas. Judges must weigh the gravity of the harm, the culpability of the offender and any mitigating factors such as mental illness. The public and victims’ families often demand accountability in the form of a firm sentence, while defence teams press for recognition of psychiatric disorders that can affect criminal responsibility.

Aftermath for the family and community

The deaths, the time the remains lay undiscovered and the public details revealed at trial left a deep mark on the family who found the suitcases and on a community still grappling with how such tragedies can remain hidden.

Members of the family who bought the storage locker had no connection to Lee or the children and reported the discovery to police when they realized the contents included human remains. Police then worked to identify the victims and trace the case to Lee, whose move overseas and subsequent extradition added an international dimension to the investigation.

Mental health, criminal responsibility and the courts

Mental health defences are comparatively rare and often difficult to prove. They require clear evidence that a defendant lacked the requisite mental capacity to understand the nature or wrongfulness of their acts at the time. In Lee’s case, the prosecution argued the record did not support a finding that she was suicidal or entirely incapable of moral judgment when the killings occurred.

Defence lawyers said Lee’s mental health history, which she raised in court, should inform sentencing. The judge’s remarks suggest the court accepted that Lee may have been burdened by grief and psychological distress after her partner’s death, but concluded those circumstances did not negate moral culpability.

Closing a painful chapter

For now, the sentence closes a criminal chapter in a case that began with a private tragedy in 2018 and unfolded into a public legal process after a chance discovery four years later. The life term ensures Lee will remain behind bars for the foreseeable future, while the minimum 17‑year non‑parole period sets a timetable for when she might next seek release under strict parole considerations.

The case raises wider questions about support systems for bereaved parents, the detection of family violence and the handling of mental illness in criminal law — issues that the court’s decision will not resolve but that public debate and policy may continue to confront.

By Abdiwahab Ahmed
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.