Disturbing Discovery: Bodies of Missing Mum and Daughter Located in Freezing Units in Austria
The deceased of a mother aged 34 and her 10-year-old daughter have been located inside freezing appliances in an flat in the western part of Austria.
The deceased, a Syrian woman and her child, who had been missing for several months, were uncovered on Friday. The cooling units were concealed behind a plasterboard wall in the dwelling, situated in the city of Innsbruck.
Two individuals, a 55-year-old Austrian and his brother aged 53, were detained in June. The 55-year-old, a colleague of the Syrian woman, informed law enforcement last week that there had been an accidentâbut denied homicide.
Addressing the media earlier, a official for the state prosecutor stated the pair were being held on "serious suspicion of murder".
The identities of those concerned have not been released by authorities, in following Austrian law.
Their going missing was initially flagged by the woman's cousin, who resides in Germany, on the 25th of July last year.
Police said the male associate informed them at the time she had gone on an prolonged visit with her child to see her family in Turkey.
The mother's debit card was then noted as being active overseas several times.
But when police entered the victim's residence, her cellphone was discovered.
An individual also claimed listening to a commotion in the apartment, and cries of "mama" on the day the pair were believed to have vanished.
An expanded police investigation was started, with officers finding several texts sent from the victim's mobileâamong them a resignation letter to her company and messages to the 55-year-old suspect.
Officials said a four-figure sum was also transferred to the individual.
The head of the State Criminal Police Office informed reporters on that day that a rented space had been rented out before the vanishing and a freezing appliance had been positioned inside.
The male siblings extracted the cooling unit from the facility on the day the victims disappeared, she stated. And a seven days after, they obtained a second unit.
Investigators state they believe this indicates the deaths were planned in advance.
"How they died could not be determined due to the advanced decay of the bodies," the official said.
The prosecutor's spokesmanâfrom the legal authoritiesâstated the exact sequence of events is not yet known, but the remains were expertly concealed and not discovered during a previous house search.
While the brothers were detained in the summer, it was only on 12 November that the suspect admitted to an incident and to hiding the bodies. He rejects any plan to cause death, authorities confirmed.
At the same time, his 53-year-old sibling admitted to a attempt to hide evidence but denied awareness of a murder.
The two suspects are presently in custody awaiting trial in prisons in Innsbruck and Salzburg, situated at a distance.
Through a combined announcement, Austria's Minister for Women and the top legal representative declared the "alleged double murder... constitutes the abrupt and violent termination of two individuals and reveals a heartless setup".
"Female individuals are falling victim to homicide due to the simple reality that they are women and girls," they continued.
"Gender-based killings are a profoundly embedded and society-wide problem that we must address decisively."