By Alexandra Schwarz-Goerlich
VIENNA (Reuters) – A 19-year-old Austrian terrorism suspect had taken concrete steps in planning an assault on a Taylor Swift live performance, with chemical substances discovered throughout a search of his residence, Austria’s normal director for public safety mentioned.
{The teenager}, with North Macedonian roots, is taken into account the primary suspect, working intently with a 17-year-old Austrian, normal director for public safety Frankz Ruf instructed ORF radio.
The 2 males are a part of a small group police are trying into, mentioned Ruf, including that the 19-year-old had pledged allegiance to the novel Islamic State group.
“We’re after all investigating their wider environment,” mentioned Ruf, including that the menace was minimized with the arrests.
Swift’s three live shows in Vienna, anticipated to attract 195,000 individuals, had been cancelled late on Wednesday after the federal government flagged a deliberate assault. Police had detained three individuals suspected of plotting assaults on live shows.
Searches of the primary suspect’s home within the city of Ternitz close to the Hungarian border confirmed “concrete preparatory actions,” mentioned Ruf, with chemical substances and technical gadgets seized.
The Kurier newspaper, citing sources aware of the state of affairs, reported that the suspect had stolen the chemical compounds from his office and had constructed a bomb.
The newspaper reported that the 19-year-old had deliberate to drive a automobile into the gang anticipated to collect exterior the stadium, and had additionally thought-about utilizing machetes and knives.
Austria’s inside ministry and intelligence service weren’t instantly out there for touch upon the report’s particulars.
The exhibits had been to be a part of the record-breaking Eras Tour by the American singer-songwriter which began on March 17, 2023, in Glendale, Arizona, U.S., and is about to conclude on Dec. 8, 2024, in Vancouver, Canada.
Swift, 34, has not but commented on the cancellations on her official Instagram account which has 283 million followers.