An Austrian man has been charged with terrorism over an alleged plot to attack a concert by Taylor Swift in Vienna in August 2024.
The 21-year-old suspect, identified only as Beran A, is accused of being a member of a terrorist organisation, making explosives and attempting to purchase weapons illegally. The charges were announced Monday by the Vienna prosecutor’s office.
According to a statement reported by the BBC, the suspect is also alleged to have disseminated propaganda for the jihadist group Islamic State.
He was arrested following a tip-off from the Central Intelligence Agency before Swift’s scheduled performances. Three sold-out shows by Taylor Swift at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium were subsequently cancelled.
Three teenagers, including Beran A, were arrested in connection with the case in 2024.
Prosecutors allege that the suspect received online instructions and worked to construct a shrapnel bomb using the explosive triacetone triperoxide (TATP), described in the indictment as a type of device “specific to IS attacks.” He is also believed to have sought advice from IS members on how to carry out a bombing.
US intelligence officials said in 2024 that the alleged plotters had hoped to kill a large number of concert-goers.
Investigators further claim that Beran A had planned an earlier attack in Dubai in March 2024. Reports at the time suggested it was part of a coordinated plot involving three simultaneous IS attacks, though he allegedly changed his mind at the last minute.
In a social media post two years ago, Taylor Swift described the cancellation of her Vienna tour dates as “devastating”.
“But I was also so grateful to the authorities because thanks to them, we were grieving concerts and not lives,” Taylor Swift added.
In a related case last year, a 16-year-old Syrian national, identified as Mohamed A, received an 18-month suspended sentence from a court in Germany over the attack.
Beran A faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
