The remains of a 34-year-old woman and her young daughter, 10 have been discovered inside freezing appliances in an residence in the western part of Austria.
The victims, a Syrian woman and her child, who had been missing for a number of months, were uncovered on Friday. The freezers were concealed behind a drywall partition in the flat, located in the Innsbruck area.
A pair of males, a 55-year-old Austrian and his 53-year-old brother, were arrested in the month of June. The older man, a colleague of the Syrian woman, informed law enforcement last week that there had been an unfortunate event—but disputed intentional killing.
Addressing the media recently, a spokesman for the public prosecutor's office said the pair were being held on "serious suspicion of homicide".
Personal details of those involved have not been disclosed by authorities, in compliance with Austrian law.
Their going missing was first reported by the cousin of the mother, who lives in Germany, on the 25th of July last year.
Investigators stated the 55-year-old suspect informed them at the time she had embarked on an long journey with her daughter to travel to her relatives in Turkey.
Her bank card was then found to have been used in foreign locations repeatedly.
However when officers searched the mother's apartment, her mobile phone was discovered.
An individual also stated listening to a loud noise in the dwelling, and screams of "mother" on the day the mother and child were believed to have vanished.
A broader criminal probe was initiated, with investigators finding several texts sent from the victim's mobile—among them a resignation letter to her workplace and messages to the male associate.
Law enforcement said a four-figure sum was also transferred to the suspect.
A senior police official stated to the press on Tuesday that a rented space had been leased before the vanishing and a freezer had been installed within.
The two suspects removed the freezer from the facility on the very day the mother and daughter disappeared, Tersch said. And a week later, they obtained an additional appliance.
Officials believe they think this indicates the fatalities were planned in advance.
"The reason for their demise was not identifiable due to the condition of the victims," Tersch commented.
Mayr—representing the state—noted the exact sequence of events is not yet known, but the remains were expertly concealed and were not found during a previous house search.
Although the men were arrested in the summer, it was not until 12 November that the 55-year-old acknowledged an event and to hiding the bodies. He rejects any plan to cause death, investigators confirmed.
Meanwhile, his 53-year-old sibling admitted to a attempt to hide evidence but denied knowledge of a homicide.
The pair are at this time in detention before court proceedings in detention centers in Innsbruck and Salzburg, around 117 miles (189km) apart.
Through a combined announcement, the nation's official for women's affairs and Justice Minister declared the "alleged double murder... represents the abrupt and violent termination of two human lives and reveals a heartless setup".
"Female individuals are being killed due to the sole reason that they are women and girls," they continued.
"Femicides are a profoundly embedded and widespread concern that we must combat firmly."
