Tragic Discovery: Remains of Missing Mother and Child Found in Freezers in Austria
The remains of a 34-year-old woman and her young daughter, 10 have been discovered inside freezers in an flat in the western part of Austria.
The victims, a Syrian woman and her child, who had been missing for several months, were uncovered on the end of last week. The freezers were concealed behind a drywall partition in the apartment, situated in the Innsbruck area.
Two men, a 55-year-old Austrian and his 53-year-old brother, were detained in June. The elder brother, a colleague of the Syrian woman, informed law enforcement last week that there had been an unfortunate event—but rejected homicide.
Speaking to the media previously, a spokesman for the legal authorities announced the brothers were being kept in custody on "strong suspicion of murder".
The names of those involved have been withheld by police, in accordance with local legislation.
Their going missing was first reported by the cousin of the mother, who lives in Germany, on July 25, 2024.
Police stated the 55-year-old suspect informed them at the time she had gone on an prolonged visit with her daughter to see her family in the nation of Turkey.
The victim's bank card was then discovered to be utilized overseas on multiple occasions.
Yet when police entered the woman's home, her mobile phone was found.
A witness also reported hearing a commotion in the dwelling, and cries of "mum" on the occasion the mother and child were thought to have disappeared.
A wider police investigation was launched, with officers finding several texts transmitted via the mother's device—among them a resignation letter to her employer and messages to the 55-year-old suspect.
Law enforcement said a four-figure sum was also sent to the man.
Katja Tersch told reporters on recently that a storage facility had been rented out before the mother and child went missing and a freezing appliance had been positioned inside.
The two suspects removed the freezer from the facility on the very day the victims disappeared, she said. And a shortly afterward, they purchased a second unit.
Investigators state they consider this indicates the demise were planned in advance.
"The reason for their demise remains unclear due to the condition of the bodies," she commented.
A legal representative—from the legal authorities—noted the specific order of occurrences is not yet known, but the remains were professionally hidden and were not found during a earlier inspection.
Although the brothers were taken into custody in June, it was not until 12 November that the suspect confessed to an occurrence and to concealing the remains. He denies any plan to cause death, officials confirmed.
Meanwhile, his brother confessed to a attempt to hide evidence but disputed awareness of a homicide.
The brothers are currently in detention before court proceedings in jails in two Austrian cities, approximately 189 kilometers away from each other.
Via a shared communication, the nation's official for women's affairs and the top legal representative declared the "suspected killing of two... symbolizes the swift and cruel conclusion of two individuals and uncovers a heartless setup".
"Female individuals are being murdered due to the sole reason that they are of the female gender," they added.
"Murders of women are a strongly established and widespread concern that we must fight resolutely."
