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The deceased of a 34-year-old woman and her 10-year-old daughter have been located inside freezing appliances in an flat in the western part of Austria.

The victims, a woman from Syria and her daughter, who had been missing for a number of months, were found on the end of last week. The cooling units were hidden behind a plasterboard wall in the apartment, located in the Innsbruck area.

Two individuals, a 55-year-old Austrian and his brother aged 53, were detained in the month of June. The 55-year-old, a colleague of the female victim, told law enforcement last week that there had been an accident—but denied murder.

Informing the media earlier, a official for the public prosecutor's office announced the pair were being detained on "high likelihood of murder".

The names of those involved have not been released by police, in following local legislation.

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

Investigators said the woman's colleague told them at the time she had taken an long journey with her daughter to travel to her relatives in the nation of Turkey.

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

But when officers searched the victim's residence, her mobile phone was found.

A witness also stated hearing a loud noise in the apartment, and screams of "mama" on the date the two were presumed to have gone missing.

A wider criminal probe was launched, with investigators uncovering various messages originating from the mother's device—such as a notice of quitting to her workplace and messages to the male associate.

Authorities stated a four-figure sum was also transferred to the individual.

Katja Tersch told media representatives on that day that a rented space had been rented out before the vanishing and a freezing appliance had been placed there.

The two suspects removed the freezer from the storage space on the day the victims went missing, Tersch said. And a shortly afterward, they acquired a second unit.

Officials say they believe this points to the fatalities were premeditated.

"The cause of death was not identifiable due to the state of decomposition of the victims," Tersch said.

Mayr—from the legal authorities—said the precise timeline is still unclear, but the remains were carefully placed and not discovered during a previous house search.

Although the men were taken into custody in June, it was not until 12 November that the 55-year-old acknowledged an occurrence and to storing the victims. He denies any plan to cause death, officials confirmed.

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

The brothers are presently in detention before court proceedings in prisons in Innsbruck and Salzburg, around 117 miles (189km) apart.

In a joint statement, the nation's official for women's affairs and the top legal representative declared the "suspected killing of two... constitutes the swift and cruel conclusion of two individuals and exposes a heartless setup".

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

"Gender-based killings are a strongly established and widespread concern that we must address decisively."