Extradition trial date set for Korean suspect in Auckland suitcase murder case

The extradition hearing for the Korean woman suspected of being involved with the deaths of two children whose bodies were found in suitcases in Auckland is set to happen on November 14, Korean media reports say.

The woman, 42, was arrested in the Korean city of Ulsan in September.

The bodies of a boy and a girl, aged about 5 and 8 at the time of their deaths, were discovered inside the suitcases that had been bought at a storage unit auction at a home in Clendon Park, Auckland, in August.

Any details which would identify the children have been suppressed in New Zealand.

Korean media is reporting the woman will face the extradition review in the Seoul High Court.

New Zealand authorities have sought to have the woman returned to Aotearoa to face prosecution and had until October 30 to file the formal request.

The extradition request from NZ Justice Minister Kiri Allan was received last week by the South Korean Ministry of Justice, who ordered the Seoul High Prosecutor’s office to file for the extradition trial.

The Korean ministry said it had reviewed the evidence submitted by NZ police which had satisfied “probable cause to believe that the suspect committed the extraditable crime”.

The Auckland family who unwittingly found the childrens’ remains won the two suitcases from an online storage unit auction from SafeStore in Papatoetoe.

The woman facing extradition is understood to be a New Zealand citizen but born in Korea and returned to Korea in the second half of 2018.

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