A teenager accused of planning a terrorist attack at a Taylor Swift concert in Austria had carried out “concrete preparatory actions”, according to authorities.
Chemicals and “technical devices” were also found during a search of the home of the 19-year-old suspect, who had posted an oath of allegiance to the current Islamic State leader on an Internet account weeks earlier, they said.
The teenager, said to have roots in North Macedonia, is considered the main suspect and worked closely with a 17-year-old Austrian youth, public security director general Frankz Ruf told broadcaster ORF.
According to authorities, the 17-year-old had started working at the concert hall days before the event was canceled.
The suspects attempted to use knives or homemade explosives as part of the alleged terrorist plot, they added.
Swift was due to play at the Ernst Happel stadium on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, before some 170,000 fans who flocked to the Austrian capital from all over the world for the sold-out events.
But event organizer Barracuda Music said in an Instagram post on Wednesday that “we have no choice but to cancel the three scheduled shows for everyone’s safety” after the “confirmation of [the] planned terrorist attack.”
The 19-year-old is considered the main suspect and works closely with a 17-year-old Austrian, Ruf said, adding that the two men are part of a small group that police are investigating.
They are among three people detained after the alleged plot was announced Wednesday night.
A 15-year-old Austrian citizen has also been questioned after being identified as a suspect, an intelligence official has said, although it is not clear if he is also in custody.
Authorities have confirmed that no other suspects are being sought.
Ruf said authorities were aware of “preparatory measures” for a possible attack “and also that the 19-year-old perpetrator is targeting Taylor Swift’s concerts in Vienna,” the Austrian Press Agency reported.
Kurier newspaper, citing sources familiar with the situation, reported that the suspect had stolen chemicals from his workplace and built a bomb.
Thousands of fans have been asked to request a refund. Photo: Invision/AP
The newspaper reported that the 19-year-old had planned to drive a car into the crowd expected to gather outside the stadium, and had also considered using machetes and knives.
Swift, 34, has yet to comment on the cancellations on her official Instagram account, which has 283 million followers.
Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer posted on X that “the cancellation of Taylor Swift’s concerts by the organizers is a bitter disappointment for all fans in Austria.”
“The situation surrounding the apparently planned terrorist attack in Vienna was very serious,” he wrote.
But he added that, thanks to intensive cooperation between Austrian and foreign police and intelligence services, “the threat could be recognized early, addressed and a tragedy averted.”
Barracuda Music said that “all tickets will be automatically refunded within the next 10 business days.”
The same text was published under the Vienna dates on Swift’s official website.
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