Tragic Discovery: Bodies of Vanished Mother and Child Located in Freezers in Austria
The deceased of a mother aged 34 and her 10-year-old daughter have been located inside freezers in an apartment in the western part of Austria.
The deceased, a woman from Syria and her child, who had been missing for several months, were detected on the end of last week. The cooling units were concealed behind a false wall in the dwelling, located in the city of Innsbruck.
Two men, a 55-year-old Austrian and his 53-year-old brother, were detained in June. The elder brother, a work associate of the Syrian woman, informed police last week that there had been an accident—but rejected intentional killing.
Speaking to reporters recently, a spokesman for the legal authorities stated the brothers were being kept in custody on "strong suspicion of homicide".
The names of those concerned have not been released by law enforcement, in following Austrian law.
The family's disappearance was originally brought to light by the woman's cousin, who lives in Germany, on the 25th of July last year.
Police said the male associate informed them at the time she had gone on an long journey with her daughter to visit her parents in the nation of Turkey.
Her bank card was then noted as being active abroad repeatedly.
However when police searched the woman's home, her smartphone was discovered.
An individual also stated hearing a disturbing sound in the apartment, and screams of "mother" on the day the pair were thought to have disappeared.
A broader police investigation was launched, with authorities discovering various messages transmitted via the victim's mobile—among them a job termination message to her workplace and messages to the male associate.
Authorities said a four-figure sum was also transferred to the man.
A senior police official told the press on that day that a rented space had been leased before the mother and child went missing and a freezing appliance had been installed within.
The two suspects removed the cooling unit from the facility on the date the victims vanished, the official stated. And a seven days after, they purchased a second unit.
Officials state they consider this suggests the demise were intentionally orchestrated.
"How they died was not identifiable due to the advanced decay of the victims," she commented.
A legal representative—of the public prosecutor's office—said the precise timeline is yet to be determined, but the victims were expertly concealed and went unnoticed during a prior examination.
Although the suspects were arrested 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, authorities stated.
At the same time, his younger brother admitted to a cover-up but denied awareness of a murder.
The brothers are currently in pre-trial detention in jails in separate locations, around 117 miles (189km) apart.
Via a shared communication, the nation's official for women's affairs and the top legal representative said the "reported homicide of mother and child... constitutes the abrupt and violent termination of two individuals and exposes a cruel system".
"Females of all ages are falling victim to homicide due to the sole reason that they are women and girls," they continued.
"Gender-based killings are a deeply rooted and society-wide problem that we must combat firmly."
