The boy and girl are believed to have been aged between five and 10 when they died four years ago and were found on August 11 in Auckland, New Zealand. Objects found within the cases are being studied in an attempt to locate them. The remains were found when a family in South Auckland unpacked the home after buying it last week. The family that opened the bags is not a suspect. The children were hidden in two similarly sized suitcases, said Detective Inspector Tofilau Faamuanaia Vaaelua. “The nature of this discovery provides some complexities to the investigation, especially given the time that elapsed between the time of death and the moment of discovery,” he added. Police in New Zealand and South Korea are now searching for the children’s mother after discovering the couple’s father died of cancer in 2017. She is currently listed as missing but is believed to have flown to the Asian country around 2018 when the children are believed to have died . Detectives have now revealed that a year before she flew to South Korea, her husband, the children’s father, died of cancer. Police have confirmed they know the identities of the children but have not released details for legal reasons. View of a police cordon at the site where suitcases with the remains of two children were found, (via REUTERS) Mr Vaaelua said the coroner issued an interim non-publication order at the request of their family. He said: “This order withholds the names of the children and their relatives and information which may lead to the identification of the two victims. “Police are continuing to investigate the circumstances of the children’s deaths.” On August 18, Mr Vaaelua said the children may have been inside the suitcases for three to four years. He said police had reason to believe the children have family in New Zealand who have yet to be identified. “The investigation team is working very hard to bring to account the person or persons responsible for the deaths of these children,” added Mr Vaaelua. “We started investigations with foreign agencies. I can’t say anything more than that.” He added that the CCTV would be analyzed but admitted that police faced a huge challenge after the length of time the bodies had been stored.
