A man accused of pledging allegiance to the so-called Islamic State group and plotting to attack one of Taylor Swift’s concerts in Vienna nearly two years ago pleaded guilty as his trial began on Tuesday, Austrian media have reported.
The plot was thwarted but Austrian authorities still cancelled Swift’s three performances in August 2024.
The US singer’s fans, known as Swifties, who had flown to Austria from across the globe to attend the show during her record-setting Eras Tour, were devastated but rallied to turn Vienna into a citywide trading post for friendship bracelets and singalongs.
The defendant, a 21-year-old Austrian citizen known only as Beran A in line with Austrian privacy rules, faced charges including terrorist offences and membership of a terrorist organisation. He could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.
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He is facing trial alongside Arda K, whose full name also has not been made public. They, along with a third man, planned to carry out simultaneous attacks in Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates during Ramadan in 2024 in the name of the Islamic State group, which is also known as Isis. Beran A and Arda K never carried out their attacks.
Beran A’s defence lawyer, Anna Mair, on Monday said her client planned to plead guilty to most of the charges but she did not specify which ones. Only Beran A is charged in connection with the Taylor Swift plot.
He allegedly planned to target onlookers gathered outside Ernst Happel Stadium – up to 30,000 each night, with another 65,000 inside the venue – with knives or home-made explosives. The suspect hoped to “kill as many people as possible”, authorities said in 2024. The US provided intelligence that fed into the decision to cancel the concerts.
Beran A also allegedly networked with other members of the Islamic State group in advance of the planned attack. Prosecutors say they discussed purchasing weapons and making bombs, and that the defendant also sought to illegally buy weapons in the days before the performance. In addition, he swore allegiance to the militant group.
Authorities searched his apartment on August 7th, 2024, and found bomb-making materials. The concerts were scheduled to begin the next day.
“Having our Vienna shows cancelled was devastating,” Swift wrote in a statement posted to Instagram two weeks later. “The reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many people had planned on coming to those shows.”
The trial is being held in Wiener Neustadt, about an hour south of Vienna. The proceedings are set to continue until May 12th.
Prosecutors have also filed terrorism-related charges against Arda K in the trial in connection with the plan for simultaneous attacks in Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the UAE.
The third man in that plot, Hasan E, allegedly stabbed a security guard with a knife at the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, on March 11th, 2024. He was arrested and remains in pretrial detention in Saudi Arabia, Austrian prosecutors said.
Beran A and Arda K did not carry out their plans in Turkey and the UAE. Beran A returned to Vienna and then allegedly began plotting to attack a Swift concert there. – AP
