Shocking Find: Bodies of Missing Mother and Child Located in Freezers in Austria

The remains of a 34-year-old woman and her young daughter, 10 have been discovered inside freezers in an flat in western Austria.

The victims, a woman from Syria and her daughter, who had been missing for a number of months, were uncovered on Friday. The cooling units were hidden behind a drywall partition in the dwelling, located in the Innsbruck area.

Two men, a 55-year-old Austrian and his 53-year-old brother, were arrested in the month of June. The older man, a colleague of the Syrian woman, told authorities last week that there had been an incident—but denied murder.

Informing journalists recently, a representative for the public prosecutor's office announced the brothers were being kept in custody on "high likelihood of murder".

The identities of those involved have not been released by authorities, in accordance with national regulations.

The family's disappearance was initially flagged by the cousin of the mother, who lives in Germany, on July 25, 2024.

Authorities revealed the male associate claimed at the time she had gone on an long journey with her child to visit her parents in Turkey.

The victim's bank card was then discovered to be utilized in foreign locations repeatedly.

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

A witness also claimed hearing a commotion in the dwelling, and shouts of "mother" on the date the mother and child were thought to have disappeared.

An expanded criminal probe was initiated, with officers uncovering multiple communications originating from the woman's phone—among them a notice of quitting to her company and texts to the 55-year-old suspect.

Officials stated a four-figure sum was also transferred to the individual.

A senior police official told media representatives on that day that a rented space had been rented out before the vanishing and a cooling unit had been placed there.

The two suspects removed the appliance from the storage space on the very day the mother and daughter went missing, the official stated. And a seven days after, they purchased a second unit.

Investigators state they believe this indicates the demise were planned in advance.

"The cause of death remains unclear due to the condition of the bodies," she said.

Mayr—from the legal authorities—noted the exact sequence of events is yet to be determined, but the bodies were professionally hidden and went unnoticed during a previous house search.

Although the suspects were arrested in the summer, it was not until 12 November that the 55-year-old admitted to an occurrence and to concealing the remains. He rejects any murderous intent, authorities stated.

In a related development, his younger brother confessed to a cover-up but disputed involvement in a killing.

The pair are at this time in detention before court proceedings in prisons in two Austrian cities, around 117 miles (189km) apart.

Through a combined announcement, Austria's Minister for Women and Justice Minister said the "alleged double murder... represents the swift and cruel conclusion of two human lives and uncovers a heartless setup".

"Females of all ages are being murdered due to the simple reality that they are of the female gender," they went on to say.

"Murders of women are a profoundly embedded and society-wide problem that we must combat firmly."