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The deceased of a 34-year-old woman and her 10-year-old daughter have been located inside freezers in an apartment in western Austria.

The deceased, a woman from Syria and her daughter, who had been unaccounted for for several months, were found on Friday. The cooling units were placed behind a drywall partition in the flat, situated in the Innsbruck area.

A pair of males, a 55-year-old Austrian and his 53-year-old brother, were taken into custody in June. The older man, a colleague of the female victim, told authorities last week that there had been an unfortunate event—but denied homicide.

Speaking to reporters earlier, a official for the public prosecutor's office announced the brothers were being kept in custody on "serious suspicion of homicide".

Personal details of those concerned have not been released by law enforcement, in compliance with local legislation.

Their going missing was originally brought to light by the woman's cousin, who resides in Germany, on the 25th of July last year.

Authorities stated the male associate told them at the time she had gone on an prolonged visit with her child to visit her parents in Turkey.

Her bank card was then noted as being active abroad on multiple occasions.

But when officers examined the mother's apartment, her smartphone was located.

An individual also reported hearing a commotion in the flat, and cries of "mum" on the occasion the pair were presumed to have gone missing.

A broader official inquiry was initiated, with officers uncovering multiple communications originating from the victim's mobile—among them a resignation letter to her employer and communications to the male associate.

Authorities said a four-figure sum was also moved to the suspect.

The head of the State Criminal Police Office told media representatives on Tuesday that a storage facility had been leased before the vanishing and a freezer had been placed there.

The brothers took out the appliance from the facility on the day the victims went missing, Tersch said. And a week later, they obtained an additional appliance.

Officials say they believe this indicates the fatalities were intentionally orchestrated.

"How they died remains unclear due to the state of decomposition of the bodies," the official stated.

Mayr—representing the state—stated the exact sequence of events is yet to be determined, but the remains were professionally hidden and not discovered during a previous house search.

While the brothers were taken into custody in June, it was only on the 12th of November that the elder brother confessed to an event and to storing the victims. He rejects any intent to kill, investigators said.

At the same time, his younger brother confessed to a concealment but disputed awareness of a killing.

The two suspects are presently in pre-trial detention in prisons in separate locations, around 117 miles (189km) apart.

Via a shared communication, Austria's Minister for Women and the top legal representative said the "alleged double murder... symbolizes the swift and cruel conclusion of a mother and child and uncovers a brutal scheme".

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

"Gender-based killings are a deeply rooted and widespread concern that we must address decisively."