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The remains of a mother aged 34 and her young daughter, 10 have been discovered inside freezers in an residence in western Austria.

The victims, a Syrian woman and her child, who had been unaccounted for for several months, were found on the end of last week. The freezers were hidden behind a drywall partition in the flat, located in the Innsbruck area.

Two men, a 55-year-old Austrian and his 53-year-old brother, were arrested in June. The older man, a colleague of the female victim, stated to law enforcement last week that there had been an accident—but disputed homicide.

Speaking to reporters earlier, a official for the public prosecutor's office said the two suspects were being kept in custody on "serious suspicion of homicide".

The names of those concerned have not been released by law enforcement, in compliance with local legislation.

The family's disappearance was first reported by the female victim's relative, who resides in Germany, on 25 July 2024.

Investigators revealed the woman's colleague claimed at the time she had gone on an prolonged visit with her child to see her family in Turkey.

Her bank card was then noted as being active in foreign locations repeatedly.

However when police searched the victim's residence, her mobile phone was found.

A witness also reported listening to a loud noise in the flat, and cries of "mama" on the day the two were presumed to have gone missing.

An expanded official inquiry was initiated, with officers discovering multiple communications sent from the victim's mobile—among them a resignation letter to her employer and messages to the male colleague.

Authorities confirmed a amount in the thousands was also transferred to the individual.

Katja Tersch told the press on that day that a storage facility had been leased before the mother and child went missing and a freezer had been placed there.

The male siblings removed the freezer from the storage space on the day the woman and her child went missing, Tersch stated. And a week later, they obtained another freezer.

Investigators believe they think this points to the fatalities were premeditated.

"How they died was not identifiable due to the state of decomposition of the bodies," she stated.

Mayr—from the legal authorities—stated the exact sequence of events is still unclear, but the bodies were carefully placed and not discovered during a previous house search.

Although the men were detained in June, it was not until November 12 that the suspect acknowledged an occurrence and to hiding the bodies. He rejects any plan to cause death, authorities confirmed.

Meanwhile, his brother confessed to a concealment but denied involvement in a murder.

The brothers are presently in pre-trial detention in jails in separate locations, around 117 miles (189km) apart.

Via a shared communication, the nation's official for women's affairs and Justice Minister declared the "suspected killing of two... constitutes the abrupt and violent termination of two human lives and exposes a cruel system".

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

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