Shocking Find: Remains of Vanished Mum and Daughter Found in Freezers in Austria
The remains of a mother aged 34 and her 10-year-old daughter have been located inside freezing appliances in an residence in the western part of Austria.
The deceased, a Syrian woman and her child, who had been unaccounted for for a number of months, were uncovered on Friday. The cooling units were concealed behind a plasterboard wall in the dwelling, located in the city of Innsbruck.
Two men, a 55-year-old Austrian and his 53-year-old brother, were arrested in June. The 55-year-old, a work associate of the Syrian woman, informed law enforcement last week that there had been an accident—but denied homicide.
Speaking to journalists earlier, a representative for the legal authorities stated the brothers were being kept in custody on "serious suspicion of intentional killing".
Personal details of those concerned have not been disclosed by authorities, in following national regulations.
The vanishing of the mother and child was originally brought to light by the female victim's relative, who lives in Germany, on the 25th of July last year.
Police revealed the woman's colleague informed them at the time she had embarked on an prolonged visit with her daughter to travel to her relatives in the nation of Turkey.
The victim's bank card was then found to have been used abroad repeatedly.
But when investigators searched the woman's home, her cellphone was discovered.
An individual also stated listening to a loud noise in the flat, and cries of "mother" on the occasion the two were presumed to have gone missing.
An expanded criminal probe was started, with officers uncovering various messages originating from the woman's phone—such as a job termination message to her workplace and texts to the male associate.
Officials stated a significant cash transfer was also sent to the individual.
The head of the State Criminal Police Office stated to the press on Tuesday that a storage facility had been rented out before the victims' disappearance and a freezing appliance had been positioned inside.
The male siblings extracted the appliance from the facility on the very day the victims vanished, the official stated. And a shortly afterward, they acquired an additional appliance.
Investigators believe they think this indicates the deaths were planned in advance.
"The cause of death could not be determined due to the state of decomposition of the remains," Tersch commented.
A legal representative—representing the state—noted the exact sequence of events is not yet known, but the victims were carefully placed and were not found during a earlier inspection.
Although the men were arrested in the summer, it was not until 12 November that the suspect admitted to an event and to hiding the bodies. He rejects any murderous intent, investigators said.
Meanwhile, his 53-year-old sibling confessed to a concealment but disputed awareness of a murder.
The pair are presently in pre-trial detention in prisons in Innsbruck and Salzburg, situated at a distance.
Through a combined announcement, Austria's Minister for Women and Justice Minister stated the "alleged double murder... constitutes the swift and cruel conclusion of two human lives and reveals a brutal scheme".
"Women and girls are falling victim to homicide due to the mere fact that they are of the female gender," they added.
"Gender-based killings are a strongly established and issue affecting all of society that we must fight resolutely."