Austrian gets 15 years for planning Taylor Swift concert attack

An Austrian court has sentenced a 21-year-old man to 15 years in prison for planning an Islamist attack on a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna. The defendant, identified as Beran A, pleaded guilty to various terrorism-related offenses.

Beran A was arrested on August 7, 2024, the day before the first of three planned concerts by the US pop star in the Austrian capital. The concerts were subsequently canceled, causing dismay among fans and the artist herself. While crowds of disappointed fans gathered to console each other, neither Swift nor her supporters attended the trial in Wiener Neustadt.

The court found Beran A guilty on almost all charges. He had attempted to illegally purchase weapons, including a machine gun and a hand grenade, and followed instructions from an Islamic State video to produce the explosive triacetone triperoxide (TATP). He also faced accusations of plotting separate attacks in Middle Eastern cities with two school friends.

During the trial, Beran A admitted to traveling to Dubai and Istanbul for planned attacks but ultimately did not carry them out. He told the court he experienced a panic attack when attempting to stab victims in Dubai, leading him to choose the Vienna concert as his target upon returning to Austria. He and a co-defendant denied providing moral support for the attacks.

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I would just like to say that I am sorry.