IN BRIEF
- An Austrian national was found guilty on all counts and sentenced to 15 years in jail.
- Three men were accused of forming a “highly dangerous IS terror cell” and planning several attacks.
An Austrian court has sentenced a 21-year-old man to 15 years in prison for planning a thwarted jihadist attack on a Taylor Swift concert. The individual admitted to the plot, which led to the cancellation of three planned shows by the American pop sensation in Vienna during the summer of 2024.
The man, an Austrian national linked to a cell of the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) group, was found guilty of all charges after hours of jury deliberation. The severity of the charges resulted in the judge imposing a 15-year prison term.
Throughout the announcement of the verdict, the defendant, known as Beran A due to privacy regulations in Austria, displayed visible distress. He repeatedly looked around the courtroom, audibly sniffled, and trembled with nervousness.
Beran A faced trial on terrorism-related offenses and additional charges last month in Wiener Neustadt, located just outside of Vienna.
Beran A went on trial last month on terror offences and other charges in Wiener Neustadt outside Vienna.
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
The defendant — who was arrested the day before the cancelled concert and has been detained since — pleaded guilty to all charges except being an accomplice to attempted murder.
Beran A faced a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison. Beran A was on trial alongside another 21-year-old, Arda K, a Slovak national who was not involved with the Swift plot.
Beran A and Arda K were accused, together with Austrian Hasan E, of forming a “highly dangerous IS terror cell” planning to carry out several attacks, mainly abroad, in the name of IS, prosecutors say.
Hasan E is currently in prison in Saudi Arabia, accused of stabbing a security official in Mecca in 2024 and injuring four others.
Arka K was sentenced to 12 years in jail. The sentences can still be appealed.
In their closing remarks, both defendants apologised.
“I just want to say that I’m sorry,” Beran A told the court.
In his testimony last month, Beran A said he had become convinced that he “had to wage jihad” but was “afraid to die”.
He told the court he picked the packed Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna during Swift’s concert as a target.
He detailed how he got instructions and tried but failed to make a bomb. He also sought advice on what weapons to choose in several chat groups and from a high-ranking IS member.
‘Send a clear signal’
Defence lawyer Anna Mair used her closing argument to urge the jury to acquit Beran of the charge of encouraging Hasan over the stabbing, arguing there was no evidence.
“Beran is not a leader, he is not an ideological mastermind,” she said.
The prosecution told the jury they had the “chance to send a clear signal” that those who commit crimes will be held accountable on all counts, adding Beran A encouraged Hasan E through “intensive contact” and other ways.
Beran A is accused of having been a member of a terror organisation from 2023, according to prosecutors. By sharing IS propaganda, he participated and “openly aligned himself” with IS, they said.
The Swift concert plot was thwarted with the help of US intelligence.
Swift later wrote on social media that “the reason for the cancellations filled me with a new sense of fear, and a tremendous amount of guilt because so many had planned on coming to those shows”.
Last year, a Berlin court convicted a Syrian teenager of contributing to the plot to attack the Swift concert. The 16-year-old was given an 18-month suspended sentence.
For the latest from SBS News, download our app and subscribe to our newsletter.