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The remains of a mother aged 34 and her young daughter, 10 have been found inside freezing appliances in an apartment in western Austria.

The deceased, a Syrian woman and her child, who had been unaccounted for for several months, were found on the end of last week. The cooling units were hidden behind a drywall partition in the flat, situated in the city of Innsbruck.

Two individuals, a 55-year-old Austrian and his 53-year-old brother, were arrested in the month of June. The elder brother, a colleague of the female victim, informed police last week that there had been an unfortunate event—but disputed homicide.

Addressing journalists recently, a spokesman for the public prosecutor's office stated the brothers were being detained on "high likelihood of homicide".

The names of those implicated have not been released by law enforcement, in following national regulations.

Their going missing was originally brought to light by the female victim's relative, who is based in Germany, on 25 July 2024.

Police revealed the 55-year-old suspect claimed at the time she had gone on an long journey with her child to visit her parents in the nation of Turkey.

Her bank card was then discovered to be utilized abroad repeatedly.

However when investigators examined the mother's apartment, her cellphone was discovered.

Someone also claimed hearing a commotion in the flat, and cries of "mama" on the occasion the two were believed to have vanished.

A wider criminal probe was initiated, with investigators discovering various messages sent from the victim's mobile—including a resignation letter to her employer and messages to the male associate.

Officials said a significant cash transfer was also sent to the suspect.

The head of the State Criminal Police Office stated to media representatives on Tuesday that a storage facility had been rented out before the vanishing and a freezing appliance had been installed within.

The brothers extracted the cooling unit from the facility on the day the victims vanished, Tersch revealed. And a shortly afterward, they obtained an additional appliance.

Authorities say they consider this points to the fatalities were intentionally orchestrated.

"The reason for their demise was not identifiable due to the advanced decay of the victims," she commented.

A legal representative—from the legal authorities—noted the specific order of occurrences is still unclear, but the bodies were carefully placed and were not found during a prior examination.

Although the brothers were taken into custody in the summer, it was only on the 12th of November that the elder brother acknowledged an event and to concealing the remains. He denies any plan to cause death, authorities confirmed.

In a related development, his 53-year-old sibling admitted to a cover-up but denied awareness of a killing.

The brothers are presently in custody awaiting trial in prisons in separate locations, approximately 189 kilometers away from each other.

In a joint statement, Austria's Minister for Women and Justice Minister declared the "alleged double murder... represents the swift and cruel conclusion of a mother and child and uncovers a cruel system".

"Women and girls are falling victim to homicide due to the simple reality that they are women and girls," they went on to say.

"Gender-based killings are a profoundly embedded and issue affecting all of society that we must fight resolutely."