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The bodies of a 34-year-old woman and her young daughter, 10 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 a number of months, were found on the end of last week. The freezers were placed behind a false wall in the dwelling, situated in the Innsbruck area.

Two men, a Austrian man, 55 and his 53-year-old brother, were arrested in the month of June. The elder brother, a colleague of the Syrian woman, informed law enforcement last week that there had been an incident—but disputed homicide.

Addressing journalists previously, a official for the public prosecutor's office announced the brothers were being held on "high likelihood of intentional killing".

Personal details of those involved have not been released by police, in accordance with Austrian law.

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

Authorities revealed the 55-year-old suspect claimed at the time she had gone on an prolonged visit with her daughter 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 officers searched the victim's residence, her cellphone was located.

A witness also stated overhearing a commotion in the dwelling, and cries of "mama" on the day the mother and child were believed to have vanished.

An expanded official inquiry was started, with authorities uncovering multiple communications transmitted via the victim's mobile—among them a job termination message to her workplace and texts to the 55-year-old suspect.

Law enforcement said a significant cash transfer was also transferred to the individual.

Katja Tersch stated to reporters on recently that a storage facility had been leased before the mother and child went missing and a cooling unit had been positioned inside.

The male siblings took out the freezer from the facility on the day the woman and her child disappeared, the official revealed. And a shortly afterward, they purchased another freezer.

Officials believe they believe this suggests the deaths were premeditated.

"The cause of death remains unclear due to the advanced decay of the victims," she said.

A legal representative—from the legal authorities—noted the exact sequence of events is not yet known, but the remains were professionally hidden and went unnoticed during a previous house search.

While the men were taken into custody in June, it was only on November 12 that the elder brother acknowledged an event and to concealing the remains. He rejects any murderous intent, authorities stated.

At the same time, his younger brother acknowledged a cover-up but denied involvement in a murder.

The brothers are currently in custody awaiting trial in jails in Innsbruck and Salzburg, around 117 miles (189km) apart.

Through a combined announcement, Austria's Minister for Women and the top legal representative stated the "reported homicide of mother and child... constitutes the sudden and brutal end of a mother and child and exposes a heartless setup".

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

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