Joanna Lee (c.1963 – December 10, 2000) was a Korean woman who was killed in December 2000 during a prolonged and violent exorcism

Exorcism

Exorcism is the religious practice of evicting demons or other spiritual entities from a person or place which they are believed to have possessed...

 carried out by Pastor

Pastor

The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....

 Luke Lee of the Lord of All cult

Cult

The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...

, in Auckland

Auckland

The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...

, New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

.

Early life

The details of Joanna Lee's early life are not clear. She may have been an orphan raised by a religious group in South Korea

South Korea

The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...

. After being accepted into the Lord of All cult, she flew to Auckland in October 2000, on a three month visitor permit with a return ticket.

Exorcism

In early December 2000, Pastor Lee (no relation to Joanna Lee) determined that Joanna Lee was possessed by "at least 20 demons". He believed they would not leave her body until she was dead, but she could then be brought back to life.

On December 10, Pastor Lee began the exorcism. Over the next six hours, he sat on her chest and abdomen, "bounced" on her body, broke several bones, and finally strangled

Strangling

Strangling is compression of the neck that may lead to unconsciousness or death by causing an increasingly hypoxic state in the brain. Fatal strangling typically occurs in cases of violence, accidents, and as the auxiliary lethal mechanism in hangings in the event the neck does not break...

 her with his hands. When she stopped breathing no efforts were made to resuscitate her.

Her decomposing body was found by police in a house in Auckland

Auckland

The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...

on December 15, after a follower raised the alarm. She had been dead for one week.

Funeral

No friends or relatives could be contacted to claim Lee's body or make funeral arrangements. In mid-2001, the Auckland Korean community performed a Christian funeral service for her and her body was cremated.

As of late 2001 her ashes were still unclaimed.

Trial

Pastor Lee was subsequently charged in relation to her death. He refused all offers of legal aid and would not participate in the trial. However, he predicted that Lee would "rise from the dead" during his trial. Lee was sentenced to six years imprisonment, and was deported shortly after his conviction. In April 2006, he won an appeal against his conviction. The Court of Appeal stated that Joanna Lee's possible consent to the exorcism had not been properly considered during the first trial.