A woman and young child have been found murdered in bushes adjacent to Thambo Street, Atlantis, Western Cape police said on Wednesday.

They were found on Tuesday.

The motive for the murders was unknown and no arrests had been made, Lieutenant-Colonel Andrè Traut said.

The 22-year-old woman was believed to be the mother of the 2-year-old child, News24 has reliably learnt.

Their heads had been covered with sand. The mother was lying in a pool of her own blood, sources said.