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The deceased of a 34-year-old woman and her young daughter, 10 have been found inside freezers in an residence in the western part of Austria.

The victims, a Syrian woman and her daughter, who had been unaccounted for for several months, were detected on Friday. The cooling units were placed behind a plasterboard wall in the flat, situated in the city of Innsbruck.

A pair of males, a Austrian man, 55 and his 53-year-old brother, were arrested in June. The older man, a work associate of the female victim, stated to police last week that there had been an unfortunate event—but denied murder.

Speaking to journalists recently, a representative for the public prosecutor's office stated the brothers were being kept in custody on "strong suspicion of homicide".

The names of those implicated have not been disclosed by law enforcement, in compliance with Austrian law.

The family's disappearance was initially flagged by the cousin of the mother, who lives in Germany, on 25 July 2024.

Authorities said the male associate claimed at the time she had gone on an long journey with her daughter to travel to her relatives in Turkey.

The victim's bank card was then noted as being active abroad several times.

But when police searched the woman's home, her smartphone was discovered.

A witness also reported listening to a disturbing sound in the apartment, and shouts of "mother" on the day the mother and child were believed to have vanished.

A broader police investigation was launched, with investigators finding multiple communications sent from the mother's device—such as a notice of quitting to her employer and texts to the male colleague.

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

The head of the State Criminal Police Office told the press on recently that a rented space had been leased before the victims' disappearance and a freezing appliance had been positioned inside.

The brothers removed the cooling unit from the facility on the date the victims went missing, she revealed. And a week later, they acquired another freezer.

Authorities state they consider this points to the demise were intentionally orchestrated.

"How they died remains unclear due to the condition of the victims," she commented.

A legal representative—from the legal authorities—noted the precise timeline is yet to be determined, but the victims were carefully placed and went unnoticed during a earlier inspection.

Although the suspects were taken into custody in the summer, it was not until 12 November that the elder brother admitted to an event and to concealing the remains. He rejects any intent to kill, authorities said.

Meanwhile, his younger brother confessed to a cover-up but denied awareness of a homicide.

The pair are currently in detention before court proceedings in jails in separate locations, situated at a distance.

Via a shared communication, the nation's official for women's affairs and Justice Minister stated the "reported homicide of mother and child... symbolizes the swift and cruel conclusion of two individuals and exposes a brutal scheme".

"Women and girls are being killed due to the simple reality that they are of the female gender," they went on to say.

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