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

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

Two men, a Austrian man, 55 and his 53-year-old brother, were taken into custody in June. The 55-year-old, a colleague of the Syrian woman, told police last week that there had been an accident—but rejected murder.

Speaking to the media earlier, a official for the state prosecutor stated the pair were being detained on "strong suspicion of intentional killing".

The names of those concerned have been withheld by police, in accordance with national regulations.

Their going missing was first reported by the cousin of the mother, who resides in Germany, on July 25, 2024.

Authorities stated the male associate told them at the time she had taken an prolonged visit with her child to travel to her relatives in the nation of Turkey.

The victim's bank card was then noted as being active overseas repeatedly.

Yet when investigators entered the victim's residence, her cellphone was discovered.

A witness also stated listening to a loud noise in the dwelling, and cries of "mother" on the day the two were believed to have vanished.

A wider official inquiry was started, with authorities discovering multiple communications transmitted via the victim's mobile—such as a resignation letter to her employer and messages to the male colleague.

Law enforcement said a amount in the thousands was also transferred to the suspect.

A senior police official stated to the press on that day that a rented space had been rented out before the victims' disappearance and a cooling unit had been placed there.

The male siblings extracted the appliance from the facility on the date the victims disappeared, she revealed. And a shortly afterward, they obtained a second unit.

Officials say they think this indicates the deaths were intentionally orchestrated.

"How they died was not identifiable due to the advanced decay of the remains," Tersch stated.

A legal representative—of the public prosecutor's office—stated the precise timeline is not yet known, but the victims were expertly concealed and went unnoticed during a prior examination.

Although the men were arrested in June, it was only on November 12 that the 55-year-old admitted to an occurrence and to concealing the remains. He disputes any plan to cause death, investigators stated.

At the same time, his younger brother confessed to a attempt to hide evidence but rejected knowledge of a homicide.

The two suspects are at this time in custody awaiting trial in jails in two Austrian cities, around 117 miles (189km) apart.

Via a shared communication, the nation's official for women's affairs and Justice Minister stated the "suspected killing of two... represents the sudden and brutal end of two human lives and exposes a heartless setup".

"Women and girls are being killed due to the sole reason that they are women and girls," they added.

"Femicides are a strongly established and widespread concern that we must fight resolutely."