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The remains of a mother aged 34 and her 10-year-old daughter have been discovered inside freezing appliances in an residence in western Austria.

The victims, a woman from Syria and her child, who had been unaccounted for for a number of months, were detected on the end of last week. The freezers were hidden 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 arrested in the month of June. The older man, a work associate of the Syrian woman, told authorities last week that there had been an accident—but disputed intentional killing.

Informing journalists recently, a representative for the public prosecutor's office said the pair were being kept in custody on "high likelihood of intentional killing".

The names of those involved have not been disclosed by police, in accordance with Austrian law.

Their going missing was first reported by the woman's cousin, who is based in Germany, on the 25th of July last year.

Investigators said the male associate informed them at the time she had gone on an prolonged visit with her daughter to visit her parents in the nation of Turkey.

The mother's debit card was then found to have been used abroad on multiple occasions.

Yet when investigators searched the woman's home, her smartphone was located.

Someone also reported listening to a disturbing sound in the flat, and cries of "mum" on the day the two were presumed to have gone missing.

An expanded official inquiry was initiated, with officers discovering several texts originating from the woman's phone—among them a notice of quitting to her workplace and messages to the 55-year-old suspect.

Officials said a four-figure sum was also transferred to the suspect.

A senior police official informed reporters on recently that a rented space had been secured before the mother and child went missing and a cooling unit had been installed within.

The brothers removed the cooling unit from the facility on the day the woman and her child disappeared, Tersch stated. And a week later, they obtained another freezer.

Authorities say they believe this points to the fatalities were intentionally orchestrated.

"How they died remains unclear due to the advanced decay of the victims," the official said.

A legal representative—from the legal authorities—noted the precise timeline is not yet known, but the bodies were expertly concealed and were not found during a previous house search.

While the brothers were arrested in the summer, it was not until 12 November that the elder brother admitted to an occurrence and to concealing the remains. He denies any murderous intent, investigators stated.

At the same time, his 53-year-old sibling admitted to a concealment but rejected involvement in a killing.

The brothers are presently in detention before court proceedings in prisons in two Austrian cities, approximately 189 kilometers away from each other.

In a joint statement, Austria's Minister for Women and Justice Minister stated the "alleged double murder... symbolizes the sudden and brutal end of two individuals and reveals a brutal scheme".

"Female individuals are falling victim to homicide due to the sole reason that they are female," they went on to say.

"Gender-based killings are a strongly established and society-wide problem that we must combat firmly."