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The bodies of a mother aged 34 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 unaccounted for for a number of months, were detected on Friday. The freezers were hidden behind a drywall partition in the flat, situated in the city of Innsbruck.

A pair of males, a 55-year-old Austrian and his brother aged 53, were taken into custody in June. The older man, a work associate of the Syrian woman, stated to police last week that there had been an accident—but disputed murder.

Speaking to reporters earlier, a official for the public prosecutor's office said the pair were being detained on "serious suspicion of intentional killing".

Personal details of those involved have not been disclosed by police, in following national regulations.

The vanishing of the mother and child was originally brought to light by the cousin of the mother, who lives in Germany, on 25 July 2024.

Investigators revealed the woman's colleague told them at the time she had gone on an extended trip with her child to travel to her relatives in the nation of Turkey.

The victim's bank card was then noted as being active abroad on multiple occasions.

However when investigators searched the woman's home, her cellphone was found.

Someone also claimed listening to a disturbing sound in the apartment, and screams of "mum" on the occasion the pair were believed to have vanished.

A wider criminal probe was initiated, with officers uncovering several texts sent from the victim's mobile—such as a job termination message to her company and messages to the male associate.

Authorities stated a significant cash transfer was also moved to the suspect.

Katja Tersch informed the press on recently that a rented space had been secured before the victims' disappearance and a freezer had been placed there.

The male siblings removed the freezer from the storage space on the date the victims went missing, the official revealed. And a week later, they purchased another freezer.

Investigators believe they believe this suggests the deaths were premeditated.

"The reason for their demise was not identifiable due to the condition of the remains," she stated.

Mayr—from the legal authorities—noted the exact sequence of events is yet to be determined, but the remains were professionally hidden and not discovered during a previous house search.

Although the suspects were arrested in the summer, it was not until 12 November that the suspect admitted to an occurrence and to hiding the bodies. He denies any murderous intent, authorities confirmed.

Meanwhile, his brother admitted to a cover-up but denied knowledge of a homicide.

The pair are at this time in custody awaiting trial in jails in separate locations, around 117 miles (189km) apart.

In a joint statement, Austria's Minister for Women and Justice Minister said the "suspected killing of two... represents the swift and cruel conclusion of two human lives and reveals a brutal scheme".

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

"Gender-based killings are a deeply rooted and society-wide problem that we must combat firmly."