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

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

The victims, a woman from Syria and her daughter, who had been unaccounted for for a number of months, were detected on Friday. The cooling units were hidden behind a plasterboard wall in the apartment, situated in the city of Innsbruck.

Two men, a 55-year-old Austrian and his brother aged 53, were arrested in the month of June. The elder brother, a colleague of the Syrian woman, informed authorities last week that there had been an incident—but rejected homicide.

Informing journalists earlier, a representative for the state prosecutor said the pair were being held on "serious suspicion of murder".

Personal details of those concerned have been withheld by law enforcement, in following local legislation.

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

Police stated the woman's colleague claimed at the time she had gone on an prolonged visit with her daughter to visit her parents in the nation of Turkey.

Her bank card was then found to have been used abroad on multiple occasions.

Yet when police searched the victim's residence, her cellphone was discovered.

Someone also stated listening to a commotion in the flat, and cries of "mother" on the date the pair were thought to have disappeared.

An expanded official inquiry was initiated, with investigators uncovering several texts sent from the woman's phone—among them a resignation letter to her workplace and communications to the male colleague.

Law enforcement confirmed a four-figure sum was also moved to the man.

The head of the State Criminal Police Office informed reporters on Tuesday that a storage facility had been rented out before the mother and child went missing and a freezing appliance had been placed there.

The male siblings removed the appliance from the unit on the date the mother and daughter went missing, she revealed. And a seven days after, they obtained an additional appliance.

Authorities say they believe this indicates the deaths were intentionally orchestrated.

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

A legal representative—from the legal authorities—said the precise timeline is not yet known, but the remains were professionally hidden and were not found during a prior examination.

While the brothers were taken into custody in the summer, it was only on the 12th of November that the suspect confessed to an event and to concealing the remains. He disputes any plan to cause death, authorities said.

At the same time, his brother confessed to a concealment but rejected awareness of a homicide.

The pair are presently in custody awaiting trial in prisons in Innsbruck and Salzburg, approximately 189 kilometers away from each other.

Via a shared communication, Austria's Minister for Women and the top legal representative stated the "reported homicide of mother and child... constitutes the abrupt and violent termination of two human lives and exposes a brutal scheme".

"Female individuals are being murdered due to the mere fact that they are of the female gender," they added.

"Gender-based killings are a strongly established and society-wide problem that we must fight resolutely."