An Austrian court sentenced a man known as Beran A. to 15 years in prison for plotting a foiled attack on Taylor Swift’s concert in Vienna in 2024.
Authorities raided his apartment and arrested him Aug. 7, 2024, just one day before Swift was set to take the stage for her first show at Vienna’s Ernst Happel Stadium, CBS News reported. The event was ultimately canceled.
Beran A. pleaded guilty to charges related to the planned attack and faced a maximum of 20 years in prison. He was found guilty of several terrorism-related offenses May 28.
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – OCTOBER 25: (EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO STANDALONE PUBLICATION USE (NO SPECIAL INTEREST OR SINGLE ARTIST PUBLICATION USE; NO BOOK USE)) Taylor Swift performs onstage during “Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour” at Caesars Superdome on October 25, 2024 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Erika Goldring/TAS24/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)
He concealed his identity by holding a binder up against his face when he entered the courtroom, Thursday.
“I would just like to say that I am sorry,” he said in court, according to CNN.
A defendant is escorted to the courtroom by justice officers as the verdict in a trial over a plot to attack a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna is awaited at a court in Wiener Neustadt, Austria, on May 28, 2026. The court is expected to rule on May 28, 2026 in the trial of a 21-year-old man who has pleaded guilty to plotting a jihadist attack on a Taylor Swift concert. The three Vienna dates in the US megastar’s record-breaking “Eras” tour were cancelled in the summer of 2024 after authorities warned of the plot. (Photo by Joe Klamar / AFP via Getty Images)
The court determined that Beran A. attempted, but failed to purchase an illegal machine gun and hand grenade to carry out the planned attacks.
He followed the instructions on “Make a bomb in the kitchen of your mom,” which was listed in an Islamic State video, and managed to produce a small amount of triacetone triperoxide, an explosive known as TATP.
Beran A. also admitted to belonging to a terrorist group but denied other accusations, including that he was involved in plotting an attack in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, according to the BBC.
After quietly working with law enforcement, Swift issued a public statement to fans, noting that she was “grateful to the authorities.”
“Because thanks to them, we were grieving concerts and not lives,” Swift said. (RELATED: ISIS-Linked Plotter Beran A. Pleads Guilty In Thwarted Taylor Swift Concert Terror Scheme)
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA – DECEMBER 06: Taylor Swift performs onstage during “Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour” at BC Place on December 06, 2024 in Vancouver, British Columbia. (Photo by Kevin Winter/TAS24/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)
“My team and I worked hand in hand with stadium staff and British authorities every day in pursuit of that goal, and I want to thank them for everything they did for us,” she continued.