GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Two of seven people charged with murdering a woman in what has been described as a “house of horrors” appeared in court on Wednesday.
Channel 2′s Courtney Francisco was in the courtroom when Mihee Lee and her youngest son, 15-year-old Junyeong Lee, entered pleas of not guilty during the hearing.
Mihee Lee’s two other sons, 22-year-old Joonhyum Lee and 26-year-old Joonho Lee, are also charged in the case.
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The boys’ cousin, 26-year-old Gawon Lee, was also living with the Lee family, and one of the brothers’ romantic partner, 25-year-old Hyunji Lee, was living there.
Prosecutors say the family claims to be part of a religious group called Soldiers of Christ.
Channel 2 Action News reported in October when attorneys described the horrors that went on in the Lee house.
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Eric Hyun, 26, was one of the latest recruits living with the Lee family.
In the summer of 2023, the group convinced a woman named See Hee Cho to move to their home from South Korea. The goal was for her to join the group. Police say to initiate her into the religion, the seven other members locked her in the basement, tortured and starved her to death.
A coroner report said she was 70 pounds when she was found in September 2023.
Eric Hyun’s attorney, David Boyle, credits his client for helping police find her. He says Hyun was brainwashed and tortured too. He eventually decided to escape with Cho’s body in the back of a car. He parked the car at the JeJu Spa and called his father for help. After rushing Hyun to the hospital with burns and bruises all over his body, the father returned to the car to find Cho’s body in the trunk, according to his attorney.
He alerted the police immediately.
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All seven have been charged with felony murder, imprisonment, tampering with evidence and concealing a death. Mihee Lee has also been charged with making false statements.
The next court date has not been set yet. Attorneys must sift through 77 witness names and other evidentiary documents., much of which is in Korean and will have to be translated.
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