Disturbing Find: Remains of Missing Mum and Daughter Found in Freezing Units in Austria

The deceased of a 34-year-old woman and her young daughter, 10 have been found inside freezing appliances in an flat in the western part of Austria.

The victims, a woman from Syria and her child, who had been unaccounted for for a number of months, were detected on the end of last week. The cooling units were concealed behind a plasterboard wall in the flat, situated in the Innsbruck area.

A pair of males, a Austrian man, 55 and his brother aged 53, were detained in the month of June. The 55-year-old, a colleague of the Syrian woman, stated to authorities last week that there had been an incident—but rejected murder.

Addressing the media previously, a representative for the state prosecutor announced the two suspects were being kept in custody on "strong suspicion of homicide".

The names of those involved have not been disclosed by law enforcement, in accordance with local legislation.

Their going missing was initially flagged by the female victim's relative, who is based in Germany, on 25 July 2024.

Police stated the male associate informed them at the time she had taken an prolonged visit with her child to visit her parents in Turkey.

Her bank card was then discovered to be utilized abroad repeatedly.

However when investigators searched the mother's apartment, her cellphone was discovered.

A witness also stated overhearing a commotion in the dwelling, and screams of "mum" on the occasion the two were thought to have disappeared.

A broader police investigation was started, with investigators uncovering multiple communications originating from the woman's phone—among them a job termination message to her employer and texts to the 55-year-old suspect.

Officials said a four-figure sum was also moved to the suspect.

A senior police official told reporters on Tuesday that a rented space had been rented out before the vanishing and a freezer had been installed within.

The brothers removed the cooling unit from the unit on the day the victims disappeared, the official said. And a shortly afterward, they acquired a second unit.

Officials believe they consider this indicates the fatalities were planned in advance.

"The cause of death remains unclear due to the advanced decay of the victims," she stated.

The prosecutor's spokesman—from the legal authorities—stated the precise timeline is not yet known, but the bodies were carefully placed and went unnoticed during a earlier inspection.

Although the brothers were taken into custody in the summer, it was not until November 12 that the elder brother acknowledged an event and to hiding the bodies. He rejects any murderous intent, investigators said.

Meanwhile, his brother confessed to a cover-up but rejected knowledge of a homicide.

The pair are currently in custody awaiting trial in detention centers in separate locations, situated at a distance.

Via a shared communication, the nation's official for women's affairs and the top legal representative declared the "reported homicide of mother and child... symbolizes the sudden and brutal end of a mother and child and uncovers a heartless setup".

"Female individuals are being killed due to the mere fact that they are female," they went on to say.

"Femicides are a deeply rooted and widespread concern that we must combat firmly."