Disturbing Find: Bodies of Vanished Mother and Child Found in Freezing Units in the Alpine Nation
The remains of a 34-year-old woman and her 10-year-old daughter have been found inside freezers in an residence in the western part of Austria.
The victims, a Syrian woman and her child, who had been unaccounted for for a number of months, were detected on Friday. The freezers were placed behind a plasterboard wall in the flat, 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 55-year-old, a colleague of the Syrian woman, told authorities last week that there had been an unfortunate event—but rejected homicide.
Addressing journalists earlier, a representative for the legal authorities stated the pair were being kept in custody on "strong suspicion of homicide".
The names of those implicated have not been disclosed by law enforcement, in accordance with national regulations.
The family's disappearance was first reported by the female victim's relative, who lives in Germany, on 25 July 2024.
Investigators revealed the 55-year-old suspect claimed at the time she had taken an extended trip with her daughter to travel to her relatives in Turkey.
The victim's bank card was then noted as being active overseas repeatedly.
Yet when police searched the mother's apartment, her mobile phone was located.
Someone also stated listening to a disturbing sound in the apartment, and screams of "mum" on the occasion the pair were thought to have disappeared.
A broader police investigation was started, with officers uncovering various messages sent from the victim's mobile—such as a resignation letter to her employer and texts to the 55-year-old suspect.
Authorities confirmed a significant cash transfer was also sent to the man.
Katja Tersch stated to media representatives on Tuesday that a storage unit had been secured before the vanishing and a freezing appliance had been positioned inside.
The two suspects removed the cooling unit from the storage space on the very day the mother and daughter disappeared, the official said. And a week later, they obtained another freezer.
Authorities say they consider this points to the fatalities were premeditated.
"The reason for their demise could not be determined due to the condition of the bodies," Tersch commented.
A legal representative—of the public prosecutor's office—noted the exact sequence of events is still unclear, but the bodies were professionally hidden and not discovered during a earlier inspection.
While the brothers were arrested in the summer, it was not until November 12 that the elder brother confessed to an incident and to hiding the bodies. He disputes any intent to kill, investigators confirmed.
In a related development, his brother admitted to a attempt to hide evidence but rejected involvement in a homicide.
The two suspects are presently in detention before court proceedings in prisons in separate locations, situated at a distance.
Through a combined announcement, Austria's Minister for Women and Justice Minister stated the "alleged double murder... represents the abrupt and violent termination of two human lives and exposes a cruel system".
"Women and girls are being murdered due to the mere fact that they are women and girls," they went on to say.
"Femicides are a strongly established and society-wide problem that we must combat firmly."