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The deceased of a mother aged 34 and her 10-year-old daughter have been found inside freezers in an apartment in the western part of Austria.

The deceased, a Syrian woman and her child, who had been missing for a number of months, were uncovered on the end of last week. The freezers were placed behind a plasterboard wall in the apartment, situated in the city of Innsbruck.

A pair of males, a Austrian man, 55 and his 53-year-old brother, were arrested in the month of June. The older man, a colleague of the Syrian woman, told law enforcement last week that there had been an unfortunate event—but denied intentional killing.

Speaking to journalists earlier, a representative for the state prosecutor said the pair were being detained on "strong suspicion of homicide".

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

The family's disappearance was first reported by the woman's cousin, who is based in Germany, on July 25, 2024.

Investigators said the male associate claimed at the time she had gone on an extended trip with her daughter to visit her parents in Turkey.

The mother's debit card was then discovered to be utilized in foreign locations on multiple occasions.

But when officers searched the victim's residence, her smartphone was located.

An individual also reported listening to a loud noise in the dwelling, and shouts of "mama" on the date the two were presumed to have gone missing.

An expanded official inquiry was started, with investigators uncovering various messages originating from the mother's device—among them a job termination message to her employer and communications to the male associate.

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

Katja Tersch stated to media representatives on Tuesday that a storage facility had been leased before the mother and child went missing and a freezing appliance had been installed within.

The brothers removed the cooling unit from the storage space on the very day the mother and daughter went missing, Tersch stated. And a shortly afterward, they acquired another freezer.

Authorities state they believe this suggests the demise were intentionally orchestrated.

"The cause of death was not identifiable due to the condition of the remains," she said.

A legal representative—representing the state—stated the exact sequence of events is yet to be determined, but the victims were carefully placed and not discovered during a earlier inspection.

While the men were detained in the summer, it was only on 12 November that the suspect confessed to an event and to storing the victims. He rejects any intent to kill, investigators stated.

Meanwhile, his brother admitted to a attempt to hide evidence but denied involvement in a killing.

The pair are presently in custody awaiting trial in jails in separate locations, around 117 miles (189km) apart.

In a joint statement, the nation's official for women's affairs and Justice Minister said the "alleged double murder... symbolizes the swift and cruel conclusion of two individuals and reveals a cruel system".

"Women and girls are falling victim to homicide due to the mere fact that they are of the female gender," they went on to say.

"Gender-based killings are a deeply rooted and society-wide problem that we must combat firmly."