The trial of a 21-year-old man over a foiled Islamist attack on a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna in 2024 enters its final day on Thursday, with the defendant, Beran A, having already pleaded guilty to the main charges, including terrorism-related offenses.
Beran A, whose last name has not been made public in accordance with Austrian privacy rules, was arrested on August 7, 2024, the day before the first of three planned concerts by the U.S. pop star in the Austrian capital.
All three dates were then canceled, to the dismay of fans and of Swift, who wrote afterward that it was "devastating."
Beran A, who is Austrian, has pleaded guilty to charges related to the planned attack, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. He covered his face with a ring binder as he entered the courtroom to avoid being identifiable in pictures.
Prosecutors say he tried but failed to illegally buy weapons, including a machine gun and a hand grenade, and followed instructions in an Islamic State video posted online to make a small amount of the explosive triacetone triperoxide (TATP).
He is also accused at the same trial of plotting separately with two school friends to carry out a solo attack each earlier in 2024 in separate Middle Eastern cities. He and co-defendant Arda K have admitted that they traveled to Dubai and Istanbul, respectively, to carry out attacks, but then did not follow through.
Taylor Swift concerts targeted in Islamist terror plot
They have denied, however, providing moral support to the third man, who was arrested in Mecca on suspicion of stabbing a security official at the holy city's Grand Mosque. He is still in custody in Saudi Arabia.
"If the jury rules as the prosecution argued the case, then we are looking at a sentence of up to 20 years," Beran A's lawyer Anna Mair told reporters as she arrived at the court in Wiener Neustadt, a town near Vienna.
"If, however, the jury sees it as we do, namely that he did not provide support to anyone, then the sentence would be significantly shorter."
Thursday's court proceedings began shortly after 9 a.m. (0700 GMT). The prosecution and defense were due to make their closing arguments later in the session before the jury retreats to deliberate. A ruling is expected later on Thursday, possibly in the evening.