South Korean police on Thursday announced the arrest of a 42-year-old woman accused of murdering two children whose remains were found in suitcases in New Zealand.

The woman, believed to be the mother of the two dead young children, has been arrested in South Korea on a murder charge at the request of New Zealand, police in both countries said.

She is now facing extradition proceedings, they added.

“Police arrested the suspect at an apartment in Ulsan on Thursday after providing clues as to her whereabouts and surveillance camera footage,” the Seoul National Police Department said in a statement.

“The suspect is accused by New Zealand police of murdering two of her children, aged seven and 10, in the Auckland area around 2018,” it said.

“It was determined that she arrived in South Korea after the crime and has been in hiding ever since,” she added.

Yonhap News Agency reported that the woman was a South Korean-born New Zealand citizen.

“Police plan to transfer the woman to the Seoul Central District Procuratorate to prepare for an extradition review by the Seoul High Court,” Yonhap said.

The grisly discovery came after an unsuspecting family bought a trailerload of items – including the suitcases – at an abandoned goods auction near Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city.

Detective Inspector Tofilau Famunaia Vaaelua in Auckland said the case was “a very challenging investigation”.

“The fact that someone was taken into custody abroad in such a short time was solely thanks to the support of the Korean authorities and the coordination of our employees at the New Zealand police Interpol,” said the detective.