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The deceased of a 34-year-old woman and her 10-year-old daughter have been found inside freezing appliances in an apartment in western Austria.

The victims, a Syrian woman and her daughter, who had been unaccounted for for a number of months, were found on the end of last week. The freezers were concealed behind a false wall in the dwelling, located in the city of Innsbruck.

Two individuals, a 55-year-old Austrian and his brother aged 53, were arrested in June. The older man, a work associate of the Syrian woman, stated to police last week that there had been an accident—but denied homicide.

Speaking to reporters previously, a official for the public prosecutor's office announced the brothers were being held on "strong suspicion of murder".

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

The vanishing of the mother and child was originally brought to light by the woman's cousin, who is based in Germany, on 25 July 2024.

Authorities said the male associate told them at the time she had embarked on an long journey with her child to see her family in the nation of Turkey.

The mother's debit card was then found to have been used overseas repeatedly.

Yet when investigators entered the victim's residence, her mobile phone was found.

A witness also stated listening to a commotion in the flat, and cries of "mama" on the occasion the two were thought to have disappeared.

A wider official inquiry was initiated, with authorities finding various messages transmitted via the victim's mobile—such as a notice of quitting to her company and texts to the male associate.

Officials confirmed a significant cash transfer was also moved to the man.

The head of the State Criminal Police Office told reporters on Tuesday that a rented space had been secured before the vanishing and a cooling unit had been installed within.

The male siblings removed the freezer from the facility on the very day the victims disappeared, she said. And a seven days after, they purchased a second unit.

Authorities state they consider this points to the fatalities were premeditated.

"How they died was not identifiable due to the condition of the bodies," the official commented.

A legal representative—of the public prosecutor's office—stated the specific order of occurrences is still unclear, but the remains were expertly concealed and were not found during a earlier inspection.

Although the brothers were taken into custody in June, it was not until November 12 that the 55-year-old confessed to an event and to hiding the bodies. He rejects any intent to kill, authorities said.

Meanwhile, his brother acknowledged a concealment but denied involvement in a killing.

The pair are at this time in pre-trial detention in detention centers in two Austrian cities, approximately 189 kilometers away from each other.

In a joint statement, the nation's official for women's affairs and the top legal representative stated the "suspected killing of two... symbolizes the swift and cruel conclusion of a mother and child and reveals a brutal scheme".

"Female individuals are being murdered due to the sole reason that they are women and girls," they continued.

"Femicides are a profoundly embedded and issue affecting all of society that we must combat firmly."