Babies found dead in freezer in Austria

The bodies of four babies have been found at a house in Austria - two in a freezer, one in a bucket of concrete and another in a nearby shed - police said yesterday.

Police in the southeastern city of Graz said the children had died around birth and the cause of death was unclear.

A 32-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of killing them but had said she did not know what happened, police added.

"She says she was in such a state that she simply doesn't know what she did," the head of Graz criminal police, Anton Lehr, said.

"We assume that these are her children but we need it in black and white with DNA etc," Mr Lehr said.

He said police were searching for more bodies. The woman said the children were born one to one and a half years apart and that the most recently born died roughly two years ago, Mr Lehr added.

"Her statement is that the first child (that was found) died two years ago, but we don't have any forensic results," Mr Lehr said, adding that she said "the first one found was the last born".

A 38-year-old man, identified as the woman's boyfriend, was arrested on suspicion of murder, he said.

The woman said her boyfriend had not noticed that she was pregnant, Mr Lehr added.

Graz's Kleine Zeitung newspaper said the house was divided into flats and that a resident was looking for ice cream in the freezer when he found a baby's body in a plastic bag inside.