Disturbing Discovery: Remains of Vanished Mum and Daughter Located in Freezers in Austria
The bodies of a mother aged 34 and her young daughter, 10 have been discovered inside freezing appliances in an flat in the western part of Austria.
The victims, a woman from Syria and her daughter, who had been unaccounted for for several months, were found on the end of last week. The cooling units were placed behind a drywall partition in the apartment, situated in the Innsbruck area.
Two men, 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 accident—but denied murder.
Addressing journalists previously, a official for the state prosecutor said the pair were being kept in custody on "strong suspicion of homicide".
The names of those involved have not been disclosed by police, in following local legislation.
Their going missing was originally brought to light by the cousin of the mother, who lives in Germany, on July 25, 2024.
Authorities revealed the woman's colleague claimed at the time she had taken an prolonged visit with her child to see her family in the nation of Turkey.
The victim's bank card was then noted as being active overseas on multiple occasions.
Yet when police examined the victim's residence, her cellphone was located.
Someone also reported overhearing a disturbing sound in the flat, and shouts of "mum" on the date the two were thought to have disappeared.
A wider police investigation was initiated, with investigators discovering multiple communications originating from the victim's mobile—including a job termination message to her employer and communications to the male associate.
Authorities stated a significant cash transfer was also moved to the man.
Katja Tersch stated to media representatives on Tuesday that a storage unit had been secured before the vanishing and a freezing appliance had been installed within.
The brothers removed the appliance from the unit on the very day the mother and daughter disappeared, the official said. And a shortly afterward, they acquired an additional appliance.
Authorities state they think this indicates the demise were premeditated.
"The cause of death could not be determined due to the condition of the victims," the official said.
A legal representative—of the public prosecutor's office—noted the specific order of occurrences is still unclear, but the remains were carefully placed and went unnoticed during a prior examination.
While the men were detained in June, it was only on the 12th of November that the suspect acknowledged an incident and to storing the victims. He disputes any plan to cause death, authorities stated.
Meanwhile, his 53-year-old sibling admitted to a attempt to hide evidence but denied knowledge of a murder.
The brothers are at this time in pre-trial detention in jails in two Austrian cities, approximately 189 kilometers away from each other.
Through a combined announcement, the nation's official for women's affairs and Justice Minister stated the "suspected killing of two... represents the sudden and brutal end of two human lives and uncovers a cruel system".
"Female individuals are being killed due to the sole reason that they are of the female gender," they continued.
"Murders of women are a profoundly embedded and society-wide problem that we must address decisively."
