Austria charges suspect in Taylor Swift concert plot
Austrian prosecutors have filed terrorism charges against a 21-year-old man accused of planning an attack on a 2024 concert by Taylor Swift in Vienna, Qazinform News Agency correspondent reports.
The Vienna public prosecutor’s office said Monday that the suspect, identified by local media as Beran A, is charged with terrorist offences, involvement in a criminal organization and other crimes. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.
The case will be heard at the regional court in Wiener Neustadt. He has been in custody since his arrest in August 2024.
According to prosecutors, the suspect pledged allegiance to the militant group Islamic State and spread its propaganda online. He is accused of obtaining instructions on the internet to build a shrapnel bomb using the explosive triacetone triperoxide, producing a small quantity of the substance and attempting several times to buy weapons illegally abroad and bring them into Austria.
Investigators allege he had been planning the attack since May 2023 and sought guidance from members of the extremist group on how to carry it out. Prosecutors say the type of device he researched is associated with previous Islamic State attacks.
The suspect was arrested shortly before three sold-out concerts by Swift at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium in August 2024. Authorities cancelled the shows after receiving intelligence, including information shared by the United States, that pointed to a possible plot. More than 195,000 people had been expected to attend the performances.
In a social media post at the time, Swift described the cancellations as devastating but said she was grateful to authorities, noting that the outcome meant people were mourning lost concerts rather than lost lives.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported on Taylor Swift’s engagement.
