Austrian man jailed for 15 years for Taylor Swift concert terror plot
The man had planned to attack a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna nearly two years ago. (AP: Lewis Joly)
In short:
An Austrian court has convicted a man of planning to attack a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna nearly two years ago.
The concert plot was thwarted, but Austrian authorities still cancelled Swift’s three performances in August 2024.
What's next?
Neither Swift nor any Swifties appeared at the courthouse for the trial.
An Austrian court has sentenced a man to 15 years in prison for planning to attack a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna nearly two years ago.
The state court in Wiener Neustadt found the 21-year-old defendant, an Austrian citizen known only as Beran A, in line with Austrian privacy rules and guilty on charges related to the concert, the Austria Press Agency reported.
The concert plot was thwarted, but Austrian authorities still cancelled Swift’s three performances in August 2024.
His defence lawyer said he admitted to the charges related to the concert plot during the opening day of the trial last month.
In short final words to the court before it adjourned to consider a verdict on Thursday, Beran A. said: "I would just like to say that I am sorry."
Swifties commiserated after the Austrian tour dates were cancelled. (AP: Heinz-Peter Bader)
Plan to target Swifties with homemade explosives
Beran A planned to target people outside the Ernst Happel Stadium with knives or homemade explosives.
Prosecutors say he tried but failed to illegally buy weapons, including a machine gun and a hand grenade, and followed instructions in an Islamic State video posted online to make a small amount of the explosive triacetone triperoxide (TATP).
He was also accused of plotting separately with two school friends to carry out a solo attack each earlier in 2024 in separate Middle Eastern cities.
He and co-defendant Arda K admit they travelled to Dubai and Istanbul, respectively, to carry out attacks, but then did not follow through.
They have denied, however, providing moral support to the third man, Hasan E, who was arrested in Mecca on suspicion of stabbing a security official at the holy city's Grand Mosque.
He is still in custody in Saudi Arabia.
Only Beran A was charged in connection with the concert plot.
Both Beran A and Arda K were found guilty of charges including travelling and training for terrorist purposes, and being part of a terrorist organisation, the Austria Press Agency reported.
The court also found the pair guilty of contributing to attempted murder, a charge linked to Hasan E's alleged stabbing of a security officer in Mecca in March 2024.
Hasan E also attacked and wounded three other officers and a woman before he was arrested, according to prosecutors.
Arda K was given a 12-year sentence.
The two men listened stoically to the verdict and the sentencing, APA reported.
Beran A's lawyer, Anna Mair, said after the verdict that she would discuss with her client in the coming days whether to accept the verdict.
Beran A covers his face as his trial gets underway. (AP: Matthias Schrader/File)
Swift left in 'fear' after plot
Tens of thousands of Taylor Swift fans, known as Swifties, had travelled to Austria to attend the American singer's record-setting Eras Tour.
Devastated by the cancellations, many gathered in central Vienna to trade friendship bracelets and commiserate.
The Swift concert plot was thwarted with the help of US intelligence.
Swift later wrote on social media that "the reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many had planned on coming to those shows".
Neither the star nor any Swifties appeared at the courthouse in Wiener Neustadt, a town south of the capital.
As the trial got underway, Beran A covered his face with a ring binder to avoid being identifiable in pictures.
Last year, a Berlin court convicted a Syrian teenager of contributing to the plot to attack the Swift concert.
The 16-year-old was given an 18-month suspended sentence.
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