By Alexandra Schwarz-Goerlich
VIENNA (Reuters) – A 19-year-old Austrian suspected of terrorism took concrete steps when planning an attack on a Taylor Swift concert, with chemical substances found during a search of his home, Austria’s director general of public security said.
The teenager, with North Macedonian roots, is considered the main suspect, working closely with a 17-year-old Austrian, public security director general Frankz Ruf told ORF radio.
The two men are part of a small group that police are investigating, Ruf said, adding that the 19-year-old has pledged allegiance to the radical Islamic State group.
“Of course we are investigating the broader environment,” Ruf said, adding that the threat was minimized with the arrests.
Swift’s three Vienna concerts, which were expected to attract 195,000 people, were canceled on Wednesday night after the government signaled a planned attack. Police detained three people suspected of planning attacks on concerts.
Searches of the main suspect’s home in the town of Ternitz, near the Hungarian border, showed “concrete preparatory actions”, Ruf said, with chemical substances and technical devices seized.
Kurier newspaper, citing sources familiar with the situation, reported that the suspect stole chemicals from his workplace and built a bomb.
The newspaper reported that the 19-year-old planned to drive a car into the crowd expected to gather outside the stadium and also considered using machetes and knives.
Austria’s Interior Ministry and intelligence service were not immediately available to comment on the details of the report.
The shows would be part of the American singer-songwriter’s record-breaking Eras Tour, which began on March 17, 2023, in Glendale, Arizona, USA, and is scheduled to conclude on December 8, 2024, in Vancouver, Canada. .
Swift, 34, has yet to comment on the cancellations on her official Instagram account, which has 283 million followers.
(Reporting by Alexandra Schwarz-Goerlich, writing by Miranda Murray, editing by Rachel More and Andrew Cawthorne)
