A 21-year-old Austrian man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after being convicted of plotting a jihadist attack targeting a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna during her Eras Tour in August 2024.
The defendant, identified in line with Austrian privacy rules only as Beran A, was also found guilty of multiple terrorism-related offences.
Authorities said he was arrested following a tip-off from the Central Intelligence Agency shortly before the first of three sold-out shows was due to take place at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium.
All three concerts were subsequently cancelled, disappointing nearly 200,000 fans as well as the singer.
Officials said Beran A had become radicalised and pledged allegiance to the militant group Islamic State, and had attempted, without success, to illegally obtain weapons, including a machine gun and a hand grenade.
Court-appointed psychiatrist Peter Hoffmann told the court there were no indications of mental illness and that there was “no psychiatric explanation” for his radicalisation.
He stood trial in Wiener Neustadt alongside another 21-year-old, Arda K from Slovakia, who was accused of involvement in an Islamic State cell but not directly linked to the concert plot. Arda K received a 12-year prison sentence.
During proceedings, Beran A apologised before the jury retired to deliberate.
Following the foiled plot, Taylor Swift said the incident left her with “a new sense of fear” and that cancelling the shows brought a “tremendous amount of guilt”.
She later added on Instagram, “I was also so grateful to the authorities because thanks to them, we were grieving concerts and not lives.”
