Little word from NZ police

AUCKLAND: A month on from the discovery of the remains of two children in suitcases in South Auckland, Korean police are understood to have had little to no contact with their New Zealand counterparts after confirming a relative of the children was in the east Asian country.

The New Zealand Herald has been in contact with a journalist from Korean national newspaper Donga Ilbo, who met Seoul police on Tuesday for an update on their involvement in the New Zealand homicide investigation.

The journalist said aside from the Korean National Police Agency confirming a female relative of the two dead primary schoolaged children had arrived in Korea in 2018, there had been no followup requests for information by New Zealand Police.

This included any requests for the location of the female relative in Korea, or inquiries around possible arrest warrants which could then potentially lead to extradition orders.

‘‘Apart from asking if this woman is in Korea, there has not been any further request from NZ Police,’’ the journalist for Donga Ilbo, which has a circulation of 1.2 million readers, said.

‘‘The [Korean] police assumes that might be due to a lengthy legal procedure [in New Zealand] and he assumes it would take some time even [if] NZ Police are thinking of it.’’

On August 11, the remains of two children aged between 5 and 10 were uncovered in suitcases bought by the occupants of a property in Manurewa.

Police later confirmed the remains of the two children had been identified, but due to a suppression order they could not be named.

The father of the two dead children had died of cancer while living in New Zealand in late 2017, Stuff has reported.

Police would not confirm whether they had sent any police officers to Korea to conduct inquiries or whether they intended to. —