The police have referred to the prosecution the case of a mother accused of killing two of her newborns and hiding their bodies in the family’s refrigerator.

The Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency said on Friday that they sent the case of the woman in her 30s, identified by her surname Ko, to prosecutors on charges of murder and concealment of a dead body.

The mother, covering her face, remained silent in front of a media lineup before being taken to the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office.

She is accused of killing the babies immediately after giving birth, a girl in November 2018 and a boy in November 2019, before storing their bodies inside the refrigerator at home in Gyeonggi provincial city of Suwon.

Already a mother of three, she reportedly explained that she committed the murders after getting pregnant while the family suffered financial difficulties.

Although Ko's husband, surnamed Lee, had also been booked, the police decided not to transfer his case due to a lack of evidence.

The woman’s crimes were discovered after the state Board of Audit and Inspection notified the health ministry about cases of newborns whose births were unregistered in the state system.