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

The victims, a woman from Syria and her daughter, who had been missing for several months, were found on Friday. The freezers were concealed behind a false wall in the dwelling, located in the city of Innsbruck.

A pair of males, a 55-year-old Austrian and his 53-year-old brother, were taken into custody in June. The elder brother, a work associate of the Syrian woman, stated to police last week that there had been an unfortunate event—but denied intentional killing.

Addressing journalists previously, a official for the state prosecutor stated the two suspects were being kept in custody on "serious suspicion of homicide".

The names of those implicated have not been disclosed by police, in following national regulations.

The vanishing of the mother and child was originally brought to light by the female victim's relative, who lives in Germany, on July 25, 2024.

Police stated the male associate claimed at the time she had taken an prolonged visit with her child to travel to her relatives in Turkey.

Her bank card was then noted as being active overseas on multiple occasions.

However when officers examined the victim's residence, her mobile phone was located.

Someone also reported overhearing a loud noise in the apartment, and screams of "mother" on the day the two were presumed to have gone missing.

A wider official inquiry was started, with authorities finding several texts sent from the woman's phone—such as a resignation letter to her workplace and texts to the 55-year-old suspect.

Authorities stated a four-figure sum was also moved to the suspect.

The head of the State Criminal Police Office stated to reporters on recently that a storage unit had been secured before the vanishing and a freezing appliance had been installed within.

The male siblings took out the freezer from the unit on the very day the mother and daughter went missing, she revealed. And a seven days after, they acquired an additional appliance.

Officials state they think this points to the fatalities were premeditated.

"The cause of death was not identifiable due to the condition of the victims," she commented.

A legal representative—from the legal authorities—said the precise timeline is yet to be determined, but the bodies were carefully placed and went unnoticed during a earlier inspection.

While the suspects were taken into custody in June, it was only on 12 November that the suspect admitted to an incident and to hiding the bodies. He disputes any murderous intent, investigators confirmed.

At the same time, his younger brother confessed to a attempt to hide evidence but rejected involvement in a murder.

The two suspects are currently in pre-trial detention in jails in Innsbruck and Salzburg, situated at a distance.

In a joint statement, the nation's official for women's affairs and Justice Minister stated the "reported homicide of mother and child... represents the swift and cruel conclusion of two human lives and reveals a cruel system".

"Females of all ages are falling victim to homicide 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 issue affecting all of society that we must fight resolutely."