Third person arrested in foiled plan targeting now-cancelled Taylor Swift shows

VIENNA — Austrian authorities announced a third arrest Friday in connection with a foiled plot to attack three now-canceled Taylor Swift concerts. Meanwhile, disappointed fans charmed Vienna by exchanging friendship bracelets and singing the pop star’s songs in the streets.

The main suspect, a 19-year-old, planned to shoot at spectators gathered outside the Ernst Happel Stadium — as many as 30,000 a night, with another 65,000 inside the venue — with knives or homemade explosives during the concert on Thursday or Friday. The suspect hoped to “kill as many people as possible,” authorities said.

He was arrested Tuesday along with a 17-year-old, officials said. Both are Austrian citizens.

The third suspect, an 18-year-old Iraqi, was arrested on Thursday evening, the interior minister said at a press conference on Friday.

A 15-year-old was also questioned but not arrested. Their names were not released, in line with Austrian privacy rules.

Swift will still travel to London’s Wembley Stadium for five concerts between August 15 and 20, concluding the European leg of her record-breaking ‘Eras ​​Tour’.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said he understood Vienna’s reasons for the cancellation but was “moving on.”

Still, the plot in Vienna has been compared to a 2017 suicide bombing at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England, that killed 22 people. The bomb detonated at the end of Grande’s concert as thousands of young fans were leaving, becoming the deadliest extremist attack in the United Kingdom in recent years.

Coldplay will perform at the same stadium in Vienna for four nights later this month.

Authorities said the plan was inspired by the Islamic State and al-Qaeda. The main suspect, as well as the 18-year-old arrested Friday, pledged “an oath of allegiance” to the Islamic State.

Investigators discovered bomb material in the home of the main suspect, as well as Islamic State and al-Qaeda material in the home of the 17-year-old. That suspect, who has so far refused to talk, was employed a few days ago by a company that provided unspecified services at the concert venue.

Although the 18-year-old has taken the oath and “comes from the same social environment” as the main suspect, Interior Minister Gerhard Karner has indicated that he is not directly involved in the plot.

The Austrian Interior Ministry said in a statement to The Associated Press on Friday: “His arrest underscores the broad scope of the ongoing investigation. Authorities are taking decisive action against anyone who may be involved in terrorist activities or shows radical tendencies.”

Investigators are closely examining the suspects’ “networks,” the statement said, and have moved to evaluate physical and electronic evidence.

‘Soft targets’

White House national security spokesman John Kirby spoke to reporters on Friday about the U.S. role in providing intelligence to Austria regarding the Swift concerts.

“The United States has a continued focus on our counterterrorism mission. We work closely with partners around the world to monitor and disrupt threats. And as part of that work, the United States shared information with Austrian partners to facilitate the disruption of a threat to Taylor Swift’s concerts there in Vienna,” he said.

Shiraz Maher, an expert on Islamic extremism at King’s College London’s Department of War Studies, said in a statement that attackers “prioritize casualties and therefore choose soft targets where they know large numbers of people will congregate.”

Concert promoter Barracuda Music has canceled the three-date “Eras Tour,” which was set to begin Thursday, after the arrests occurred too close to the show’s scheduled start.

Heartbroken Swifties consoled each other on social media and on the streets of Vienna. Having traveled from around the world, hundreds gathered on Corneliusgasse, a small street just 3 miles from the stadium whose name recalls “Cornelia Street,” a contemplative synth-pop track from Swift’s 2019 album, “Lover.”

They sang Swift’s top hits, took selfies and traded friendship bracelets hanging from the branches of the only tree on the street. Swift fans often swap the beaded bracelets, usually featuring Swift’s song titles or popular phrases, with strangers at her concerts.

Huiyeon Kim, 22, took a 14-hour flight from South Korea to Vienna for the concert. On Friday, she was among about 300 fans who spent the day on Corneliusgasse. She called the cancellation “so disappointing.”

“We couldn’t understand it or believe it,” she said. “I think it was very, very sad.”

Meanwhile, younger fans and their parents traveled to Vienna Zoo to see the sights, and photos on social media show them spotting references to Swift’s songs in the souvenir shop.

The text “Karma is a cat” — written on paper banners designed, of course, as friendship bracelets — was nestled among stuffed felines, with a quote from “Karma” from the 2022 album “Midnights.”

Even as fans sang along to her hits, the superstar has not spoken publicly about the plot or canceled shows. A spokesperson for Swift did not respond to multiple requests for comment from the Associated Press this week.

When a suspect killed three girls and injured 10 people in a knife attack during a Taylor Swift-themed dance and yoga class in England last month, the artist said she was “completely shocked” by the violence.

Contributions: Kirsten Grieshaber, Maria Sherman, Jan M. Olsen, Vanessa Gera, Danica Kirka, David Klepper, Ellen Knickmeyer and Seung Min Kim