Austrian who planned attack on Taylor Swift concert gets 15 years in prison
The Detroit News • • entertainment
Key Points:
- An Austrian court sentenced 21-year-old Beran A to 15 years in prison for planning a foiled Islamist attack on a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna in 2024, convicting him on multiple terrorism-related charges.
- Beran A admitted to attempting to illegally purchase weapons and producing explosives following ISIS instructions, as well as plotting solo attacks in Middle Eastern cities earlier in 2024.
- The court found Beran A guilty on nearly all charges except two lesser ones related to spreading IS propaganda, while his co-defendant Arda K received a 12-year sentence.
- Both defendants denied supporting a third man arrested in Mecca for stabbing a security official, though Beran A showed emotional distress upon the guilty verdict concerning this charge.
- The planned Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna were cancelled following Beran A's arrest, disappointing fans and the artist herself.