Shocking Find: Remains of Missing Mum and Daughter Found in Freezing Units in the Alpine Nation

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The remains of a mother aged 34 and her young daughter, 10 have been located inside freezing appliances in an residence in the western part of Austria.

The deceased, a Syrian woman and her daughter, who had been unaccounted for for several months, were detected on Friday. The cooling units were concealed behind a false wall in the apartment, situated in the Innsbruck area.

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

Informing journalists recently, a spokesman for the public prosecutor's office said the pair were being detained on "high likelihood of intentional killing".

Personal details of those involved have been withheld by law enforcement, in following Austrian law.

The vanishing of the mother and child was originally brought to light by the woman's cousin, who resides in Germany, on the 25th of July last year.

Authorities said the 55-year-old suspect claimed at the time she had taken an extended trip with her child to see her family in the nation of Turkey.

The mother's debit card was then noted as being active abroad on multiple occasions.

However when police searched the mother's apartment, her mobile phone was found.

A witness also stated overhearing a loud noise in the dwelling, and screams of "mum" on the occasion the mother and child were presumed to have gone missing.

A wider criminal probe was initiated, with authorities uncovering various messages originating from the woman's phone—among them a job termination message to her company and communications to the male associate.

Authorities stated a significant cash transfer was also sent to the man.

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Katja Tersch told reporters on Tuesday that a rented space had been rented out before the victims' disappearance and a freezing appliance had been installed within.

The brothers took out the freezer from the storage space on the date the woman and her child disappeared, the official revealed. And a seven days after, they purchased a second unit.

Investigators say they consider this suggests the deaths were planned in advance.

"The cause of death remains unclear due to the state of decomposition of the remains," she commented.

A legal representative—from the legal authorities—noted the precise timeline is yet to be determined, but the victims were expertly concealed and went unnoticed during a previous house search.

While the brothers were arrested in the summer, it was only on the 12th of November that the suspect confessed to an event and to concealing the remains. He disputes any intent to kill, investigators said.

In a related development, his brother acknowledged a attempt to hide evidence but rejected awareness of a homicide.

The brothers are at this time in detention before court proceedings in prisons in two Austrian cities, around 117 miles (189km) apart.

Via a shared communication, Austria's Minister for Women and Justice Minister said the "alleged double murder... constitutes the abrupt and violent termination of two individuals and exposes a brutal scheme".

"Female individuals are falling victim to homicide due to the sole reason that they are female," they went on to say.

"Murders of women are a strongly established and widespread concern that we must fight resolutely."

Thomas Garcia
Thomas Garcia

A passionate gamer and tech writer with over a decade of experience covering the gaming industry and its evolving trends.