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The deceased of a 34-year-old woman and her 10-year-old daughter have been located inside freezers in an residence in western Austria.

The deceased, a woman from Syria and her daughter, who had been missing for several months, were detected on Friday. The cooling units were placed behind a drywall partition in the dwelling, located in the Innsbruck area.

Two individuals, a 55-year-old Austrian and his 53-year-old brother, were arrested in June. The 55-year-old, a colleague of the female victim, informed authorities last week that there had been an incident—but rejected homicide.

Speaking to the media recently, a official for the public prosecutor's office said the brothers were being held on "high likelihood of murder".

The names of those implicated have been withheld by law enforcement, in compliance with local legislation.

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

Investigators said the 55-year-old suspect told them at the time she had gone on an long journey with her child to see her family in the nation of Turkey.

The victim's bank card was then discovered to be utilized overseas several times.

Yet when investigators examined the woman's home, her mobile phone was discovered.

A witness also claimed overhearing a commotion in the dwelling, and shouts of "mum" on the date the mother and child were presumed to have gone missing.

An expanded criminal probe was launched, with investigators finding several texts sent from the victim's mobile—such as a job termination message to her workplace and messages to the 55-year-old suspect.

Authorities confirmed a significant cash transfer was also sent to the suspect.

A senior police official informed media representatives on recently that a storage facility had been leased before the victims' disappearance and a cooling unit had been positioned inside.

The brothers took out the freezer from the storage space on the day the victims disappeared, the official stated. And a week later, they purchased a second unit.

Investigators say they consider this indicates the demise were premeditated.

"The reason for their demise remains unclear due to the condition of the victims," she said.

The prosecutor's spokesman—from the legal authorities—stated the precise timeline is not yet known, but the remains were carefully placed and went unnoticed during a earlier inspection.

While the suspects were detained in the summer, it was only on November 12 that the 55-year-old admitted to an occurrence and to hiding the bodies. He rejects any intent to kill, officials confirmed.

Meanwhile, his 53-year-old sibling acknowledged a attempt to hide evidence but disputed knowledge of a murder.

The pair are presently in custody awaiting trial in detention centers in separate locations, around 117 miles (189km) apart.

In a joint statement, the nation's official for women's affairs and the top legal representative stated the "reported homicide of mother and child... represents the abrupt and violent termination of two human lives and reveals a heartless setup".

"Women and girls are being killed due to the simple reality that they are women and girls," they continued.

"Femicides are a profoundly embedded and society-wide problem that we must fight resolutely."