Tragic twist in the case of two children found dead in a bag bought at auction

New Zealand Police have revealed that the father of the two children, who were believed to have been in the suitcases for four years, died a year before their mother was flies to South Korea

Two children were found rotting in unclaimed suitcases won at auction in New Zealand

A shocking new twist in the heartbreaking case of two children found dead in unclaimed bags has emerged as it was revealed that their father died of cancer a year before their mother disappeared.

The heartbreaking discovery of the boy and girl, believed to be between five and 10 years old when they died four years ago, shook the world after they were discovered in New Zealand on August 11.

The abandoned pair were found after a family bought the contents of a storage unit and the children were found in two suitcases inside.

Police in New Zealand and South Korea are now looking for the children's mother after it was discovered that the duo's father died of cancer in 2017.

She is currently missing, but is believed to have flown to the Asian country in 2018 when their children died.

The family who opened the suitcases are not suspects.

Detectives have now revealed that up to a year before she flew to South Korea, her husband, the children's father, died of cancer.

The storage unit was purchased from this Safe Store facility in Papatoetoe (

Picture:

AFP via Getty Images)

The couple, who police confirmed were from South Korea, married in New Zealand.

Police have confirmed they know the identities of the children, but have not released any details for legal reasons.

Detective Inspector Tofilau Faamanuia Vaaelua said the coroner issued an interim publication ban at the request of their family.

He said: "This order removes the names of the children and their relatives as well as evidence that may lead to the identification of the two victims.

"Police continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the children's deaths."

The missing woman, a New Zealander of Korean descent, arrived in South Korea in 2018 and there was no record of leaving...