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The remains of a 34-year-old woman and her young daughter, 10 have been discovered inside freezers in an residence in the western part of Austria.

The deceased, a woman from Syria and her daughter, who had been unaccounted for for several months, were uncovered on Friday. The freezers were hidden behind a plasterboard wall in the flat, located in the Innsbruck area.

Two individuals, a Austrian man, 55 and his brother aged 53, were detained in June. The older man, a colleague of the female victim, informed police last week that there had been an accident—but rejected homicide.

Informing reporters earlier, a official for the public prosecutor's office stated the pair were being held on "high likelihood of murder".

The names of those involved have not been disclosed by authorities, in compliance with national regulations.

Their going missing was first reported by the female victim's relative, who lives in Germany, on July 25, 2024.

Investigators stated the male associate claimed at the time she had embarked on an long journey with her child to travel to her relatives in the nation of Turkey.

Her bank card was then found to have been used abroad on multiple occasions.

However when investigators examined the woman's home, her cellphone was found.

An individual also stated listening to a loud noise in the dwelling, and screams of "mum" on the day the pair were presumed to have gone missing.

An expanded official inquiry was initiated, with investigators uncovering various messages transmitted via the victim's mobile—including a resignation letter to her company and texts to the male associate.

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

The head of the State Criminal Police Office told media representatives on that day that a storage unit had been leased before the vanishing and a freezing appliance had been positioned inside.

The male siblings took out the cooling unit from the storage space on the very day the victims vanished, Tersch revealed. And a seven days after, they purchased an additional appliance.

Investigators state they consider this indicates the deaths were intentionally orchestrated.

"The cause of death could not be determined due to the condition of the bodies," the official stated.

A legal representative—of the public prosecutor's office—said the exact sequence of events is yet to be determined, but the remains were expertly concealed and were not found during a previous house search.

Although the men were taken into custody in June, it was only on 12 November that the suspect admitted to an incident and to hiding the bodies. He denies any intent to kill, officials confirmed.

In a related development, his brother admitted to a concealment but disputed knowledge of a murder.

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

Through a combined announcement, Austria's Minister for Women and Justice Minister said the "alleged double murder... symbolizes the swift and cruel conclusion of two individuals and exposes a brutal scheme".

"Females of all ages are falling victim to homicide due to the mere fact that they are of the female gender," they added.

"Femicides are a deeply rooted and widespread concern that we must address decisively."