Shocking Find: Remains of Missing Mum and Daughter Located in Freezers in the Alpine Nation
The deceased of a mother aged 34 and her young daughter, 10 have been located inside freezers in an apartment in the western part of Austria.
The deceased, a woman from Syria and her child, who had been missing for a number of months, were detected on Friday. The freezers were concealed behind a drywall partition in the dwelling, situated in the Innsbruck area.
Two individuals, a 55-year-old Austrian and his 53-year-old brother, were taken into custody in the month of June. The older man, a work associate of the Syrian woman, informed law enforcement last week that there had been an unfortunate event—but rejected murder.
Addressing reporters previously, a spokesman for the state prosecutor announced the two suspects were being kept in custody on "serious suspicion of murder".
Personal details of those concerned have been withheld by police, in following Austrian law.
Their going missing was first reported by the woman's cousin, who resides in Germany, on the 25th of July last year.
Investigators stated the male associate claimed at the time she had gone on an prolonged visit with her daughter to visit her parents in Turkey.
The mother's debit card was then discovered to be utilized overseas several times.
Yet when investigators searched the woman's home, her mobile phone was located.
A witness also reported hearing a loud noise in the dwelling, and cries of "mama" on the occasion the mother and child were presumed to have gone missing.
A wider official inquiry was launched, with authorities finding several texts originating from the victim's mobile—such as a resignation letter to her employer and communications to the male associate.
Officials said a four-figure sum was also moved to the man.
Katja Tersch informed the press on Tuesday that a storage unit had been secured before the vanishing and a freezing appliance had been placed there.
The male siblings removed the cooling unit from the unit on the very day the mother and daughter went missing, Tersch stated. And a week later, they acquired an additional appliance.
Officials believe they believe this points to the fatalities were planned in advance.
"The reason for their demise could not be determined due to the condition of the bodies," she commented.
Mayr—of the public prosecutor's office—said the specific order of occurrences is not yet known, but the remains were professionally hidden and not discovered during a prior examination.
While the brothers were detained in June, it was not until 12 November that the suspect admitted to an incident and to hiding the bodies. He disputes any plan to cause death, officials stated.
Meanwhile, his brother acknowledged a cover-up but rejected involvement in a killing.
The pair are at this time in pre-trial detention in detention centers in separate locations, approximately 189 kilometers away from each other.
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 sudden and brutal end of two human lives and reveals a heartless setup".
"Female individuals are being killed due to the mere fact that they are women and girls," they added.
"Femicides are a deeply rooted and widespread concern that we must fight resolutely."