The bodies of a mother and her two daughters chopped into pieces have been found in a freezer after they were apparently butchered by a man who was in love with the older woman.

The trio had been drugged first before their bodies were chopped up and stashed in the freezer. The boyfriend of one of the girls also suffered the same fate, and his body was found stashed in the fridge.

The family’s relatives called the authorities in the Bayrakli neighbourhood in the south-western Turkish city of Izmir after receiving no news from their loved ones.

The police gained access to the family home with the help of a locksmith and discovered the gruesome scene.

Three of the victims have been named as mum Gulkamar Hanimova and her daughters Leyla Geldiyazova and Lacin Geldiyazova, all nationals from Turkmenistan.

Their bodies were found dismembered and stashed in the freezer, while the fourth victim, the boyfriend of one of the girls, who has been named as Ruslan Kerimov, was found in the nearby fridge, according to local media.

The local police launched a large-scale investigation into the brutal killings, with the Izmir Governor’s Office confirming in a statement that the four bodies were discovered on Sunday, 18th June, at around 11 am.

After allegedly killing the four victims, the suspect reportedly fled the scene before being apprehended in the nearby popular tourist resort town of Cesme.

The suspect, named as Saparmurat Haliyev, is also from Turkmenistan, according to the Governor’s Office. He reportedly worked at a local restaurant.

The statement also said: “Saparmurat Haliyev, who was caught with a knife which he claimed to have used, confessed that he committed the murders out of jealousy. Legal proceedings regarding the incident are continuing.”

He is said to have been in love with the girls’ mother and reportedly put his victims to sleep by drugging their drinks before allegedly butchering them. It is clear if they were alive and drugged or dead when he chopped them up.

Haliyev had reportedly asked local shopkeepers a few days before the gruesome discovery where he could buy a deep freezer.

A local, named in local media as Ramazan Yuksel, 58, a married father of three, said that they were “shocked” and that the family had been quiet and had lived in the area for about three years.

He added: “We heard that the murderer asked the shopkeepers in the neighbourhood where he could buy a deep freezer a few days ago.”

The dismembered remains were taken for autopsy, with DNA tests reportedly being carried out on the body parts to determine which part belonged to which victim.

The investigation is ongoing.