Two young people arrested in a foiled plot to attack Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna appeared to be inspired by the Islamic State and al-Qaeda, Austrian authorities said Thursday after finding bomb-making materials and chemicals at one of their homes.
One of the two teens confessed to planning to “kill as many people as possible outside the concert venue,” officials said.
All three of Swift’s tour dates in Vienna were cancelled by the event organizers on Wednesday after government officials learned of the planned terrorist attack at Ernst Happel Stadium. Swift was scheduled to perform there Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
The two suspects, ages 19 and 17, were arrested Wednesday and no other suspects are being sought, according to Interior Minister Gerhard Karner.
“The situation was serious, the situation is serious. But we can also say: A tragedy was prevented,” Karner said, according to CBS News.
The main suspect, a 19-year-old Austrian with North Macedonian roots, began working on his attack plans in July. Just a few weeks ago he uploaded to the internet a pledge of allegiance to the current leader of the Islamic State group militia, also known as ISIS, officials said. He planned to use knives or homemade explosives to carry out the attack outside the stadium.
Police cars park outside Ernst Happel Stadium on Aug. 8, 2024 in Vienna, Austria after Austrian law enforcement announced it had foiled a suspected attack on the venue.
Thomas Kronsteiner/Getty Images
The 19-year-old was “clearly radicalized in the direction of the Islamic State and thinks it is right to kill infidels,” said Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, the head of the Directorate of State Security and Intelligence.
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During a raid of his home in Ternitz, south of Vienna, investigators found chemical substances and technical devices that indicated “concrete preparatory acts,” said Franz Ruf, director general for public security at the Ministry of the Interior.
Ruf told Austria’s public radio that Austrian authorities learned of the planned terrorist attack on the Swift concerts from “foreign services.”
Austrian media also reported that the 19-year-old had stolen the bomb-making chemicals from his former employer, a local metalworking company, and that he planned to drive a car through the crowd outside the stadium, The Guardian reports.
The second suspect, a 17-year-old Austrian citizen with Turkish and Croatian roots, was arrested by special forces on Wednesday near Ernst Happel Stadium, where the concerts were supposed to take place.
Just a few days prior, he had been employed by a company providing venue services for the Swift concerts. Authorities say they found materials linked to the Islamic State and al-Qaeda at his home.
The suspects’ names were not released in line with Austrian privacy rules.
Concert organizers stood by their decision to cancel Swift’s three shows in the interest of “everyone’s safety,” as devastated Swifties express their frustration online and to the media. Many concertgoers flew from outside Europe and dropped thousands of euros on lodging in Austria’s expensive capital city to attend the Eras Tour.
All ticketholders will have their money refunded in the next 10 business days, but remaining tickets for the Eras tour are limited and resale prices exorbitant. Swifties who missed their chance to see the artist in Vienna may not get another chance.
Ariella Kimmel, a woman from Ontario who flew to Vienna to see Swift in concert, said she felt “deflated and sad” after learning that the shows were cancelled, but is grateful that authorities were able to foil the plot.
“We were out for dinner last night and started to see tweets coming in saying that there had been the arrests and … that the shows were being cancelled,” Kimmel told Global News’ 640 Toronto radio. “And then we got the official word of the cancellations and you could kind of feel everyone just felt very deflated and sad.”
“I’m definitely grateful to the police and all of the protective services who played a role in stopping this,” Kimmel added. “So there’s definitely some relief to it, and gratefulness that our integrated security services work.”
The sold-out shows were expected to play host to some 65,000 fans each night, with as many as 30,000 onlookers outside, concert organizers said. The foiled attack was planned for Thursday or Friday.
— With files from The Associated Press and Global News’ Greg Brady
© 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.