Tragic Discovery: Remains of Missing Mum and Daughter Found in Freezers in the Alpine Nation
The remains of a 34-year-old woman and her 10-year-old daughter have been located inside freezing appliances in an apartment in the western part of Austria.
The deceased, a Syrian woman and her daughter, who had been unaccounted for for a number of months, were detected on Friday. The cooling units were placed behind a drywall partition in the apartment, situated in the city of Innsbruck.
Two men, a Austrian man, 55 and his 53-year-old brother, were detained in the month of June. The elder brother, a work associate of the Syrian woman, told authorities last week that there had been an incident—but rejected homicide.
Informing the media recently, a representative for the public prosecutor's office said the pair were being held on "strong suspicion of homicide".
The identities of those concerned have been withheld by authorities, in compliance with national regulations.
Their going missing was first reported by the cousin of the mother, who resides in Germany, on July 25, 2024.
Police stated the male associate told them at the time she had taken an long journey with her daughter to visit her parents in Turkey.
The victim's bank card was then discovered to be utilized overseas several times.
Yet when investigators examined the victim's residence, her smartphone was located.
A witness also reported hearing a loud noise in the apartment, and screams of "mama" on the date the mother and child were thought to have disappeared.
A broader official inquiry was launched, with investigators finding several texts transmitted via the woman's phone—including a job termination message to her workplace and messages to the 55-year-old suspect.
Officials said a four-figure sum was also moved to the suspect.
The head of the State Criminal Police Office informed media representatives on Tuesday that a storage unit had been leased before the victims' disappearance and a cooling unit had been positioned inside.
The two suspects extracted the cooling unit from the unit on the date the mother and daughter vanished, the official stated. And a shortly afterward, they purchased another freezer.
Investigators believe they think this suggests the fatalities were premeditated.
"The reason for their demise could not be determined due to the advanced decay of the remains," Tersch commented.
Mayr—of the public prosecutor's office—said the exact sequence of events is yet to be determined, but the remains were carefully placed and not discovered during a earlier inspection.
Although the brothers were detained in June, it was not until 12 November that the suspect acknowledged an incident and to concealing the remains. He denies any intent to kill, investigators said.
In a related development, his younger brother admitted to a attempt to hide evidence but rejected awareness of a killing.
The two suspects are presently in custody awaiting trial in jails in separate locations, around 117 miles (189km) apart.
Through a combined announcement, Austria's Minister for Women and the top legal representative stated the "alleged double murder... symbolizes the sudden and brutal end of two human lives and exposes a cruel system".
"Female individuals are being murdered due to the sole reason that they are women and girls," they went on to say.
"Femicides are a strongly established and issue affecting all of society that we must combat firmly."
