Moscow ( CNN ) -- Police in Russia are investigating the murder of two women found under a slogan backing the female punk rock band Pussy Riot , apparently written in the victims ' blood , officials said Thursday . The words `` Free Pussy Riot '' were scrawled in English on the apartment wall above the bodies of a 76-year-old woman and her 38-year-old daughter , investigators in Russia 's Republic of Tatarstan said in a statement . The two women , who shared a home , are thought to have died of numerous stab wounds between August 24 and 26 in the city of Kazan , the Tatarstan investigative committee said . Their bodies were found Wednesday . An investigation has been launched to uncover the circumstances of the crime , as well as those responsible and their motive , the statement said . The murder inquiry comes two weeks after a court in Moscow sentenced three members of Pussy Riot to two years ' imprisonment , a conviction and verdict that prompted international condemnation . The three women were found guilty of hooliganism for performing a song critical of President Vladimir Putin in one of the Russian Orthodox Church 's most important cathedrals . Representatives of the jailed band members rejected the supposed link between Pussy Riot and the double murder in Kazan . `` I just found out about the incident in Kazan . Either it 's a terrible provocation ... Or psychiatry , '' Violetta Volkova , a lawyer for Pussy Riot , tweeted . Those responsible `` need to be found and punished , '' she said . Another lawyer for the band members , Nikolay Polozov , posted on Twitter : `` It 's weird that the media mention 'supporters of Pussy Riot ' while commenting on the murder in Kazan . Dear journalists , please wait for official statements from Investigative committee . '' `` What happened in Kazan is terrible . Pussy Riot always supported peaceful protest , '' he added . Whether the suspect or suspects in the Kazan murder are truly supporters of Pussy Riot remains unclear . Two other members of the band fled Russia this week `` because of the danger , '' according to the husband of one of the three sent to prison . Public opinion in Russia is divided on the band , which specializes in provocative performances aimed at making political statements . Kazan , in western Russia , is one of the country 's larger cities , with more than a million inhabitants . CNN 's Alla Eshchenko contributed to this report .
NEW : Lawyers for Pussy Riot condemned the murders , and the band backed peaceful protests . Investigators : The words ` ` Free Pussy Riot '' are painted on a wall above the murder victims . The bodies are those of a 76-year - old woman and her husband , investigators say . Three members of the punk band Pussy Riot were sentenced to prison terms this month .