The mother of the woman accused of murdering her children and hiding their bodies in suitcases, has opened up about her daughter's emotional state

45-year-old Hakyung Lee's on trial at the High Court in Auckland over her two children's deaths in 2018.

She's raised an insanity defence, linked to her husband's death the year before.

Lee's mother, Choon Ja Lee, says her daughter was emotionally weak after he died, but initially believed Lee's suicidal comments would pass.

She also described finding Lee in a Korean hospital in 2022, where Lee told her she didn't have children.

The children's bodies were discovered the same year.