A woman in New Zealand has been sentenced to a minimum of 17 years in prison for the murder of her two children, whose bodies were found in suitcases after being hidden for several years. Justice Geoffrey Venning delivered the ruling on March 15, 2024, during a hearing at the High Court in Auckland. The judge stated that Hakyung Lee would initially serve her sentence in a psychiatric facility, as mandated by New Zealand’s mental health treatment laws.
Lee, 43, was convicted of murdering her daughters, Minu Jo, aged 6, and Yuna Jo, aged 8, in 2018. A jury found her guilty in September, rejecting her defense of insanity. During the sentencing, Lee’s attorneys argued for leniency due to her mental health struggles, indicating that she had expressed remorse for her actions and faced isolation and threats while in custody. Despite these claims, Justice Venning emphasized that her actions were premeditated and deliberate.
The prosecution revealed that the children’s remains were uncovered in 2022 after Lee defaulted on payments for a storage unit, leading to its contents being auctioned off. The new owners discovered the bodies inside the suitcases. Following the murders, Lee fled to South Korea, where she assumed a new identity before being extradited back to New Zealand to stand trial.
During the trial, Lee’s legal team acknowledged that she caused the children’s deaths by administering an antidepressant medication. Attorney Lorraine Smith described Lee as having been “fragile” before her husband’s death, suggesting that her mental state deteriorated significantly thereafter. In New Zealand, a successful insanity defense requires proof that the defendant was incapable of understanding their actions or the moral implications of those actions.
The legal framework in New Zealand mandates that individuals convicted of murder face a life sentence, with judges determining a minimum period before they may apply for parole. In Lee’s case, Justice Venning set the minimum sentence at 17 years.
Emotional statements were presented in court, with Lee’s brother, Jimmy Sei Wook Jo, expressing his family’s profound grief. He stated, “I never imagined such a profound tragedy would ever befall our family. I feel like I failed to look after my niece and nephew.” Lee’s mother, Choon Ja Lee, also conveyed her devastation, describing her pain as “a feeling that cut through my bones.”
Following the sentencing, New Zealand police acknowledged the support of their South Korean counterparts in the investigation. Detective Inspector Tofilau Faamanuia Va’aelua remarked, “Yuna and Minu would have been 16 and 13 today. Our thoughts are with the wider family today for the tragic loss of these two young children.”
This case has drawn significant attention, highlighting the complexities surrounding mental health and the legal system’s response to severe crimes.
