A third suspect has been arrested in connection to the planned terrorist attack on Taylor Swift‘s Vienna Eras Tour concerts. Associated Press reports that the third suspect was an 18-year-old Iraqi citizen who was arrested on Thursday evening (8/8). Like the other two suspects, authorities say he swore “an oath of allegiance” to the Islamic State group and Al-Qaida. Interior Minister Gerhard Karner says that while the third suspect “comes from the social environment” of the main suspect, he isn’t “directly linked to the plot,” however.
In a statement to Associated Press on Friday, the Austrian Interior Ministry said this latest arrest “underscores the broad scope of the ongoing investigation. Authorities are taking decisive action against anyone who might be involved in terrorist activities or exhibits radical tendencies.”
The main suspect, a 19-year-old, had confessed his plans to “kill as many people as possible” and then kill himself to police, and weapons and explosives were found at his home. The second suspect, a 17-year-old suspected of being an accomplice, refuses to speak to authorities at this time. He had recently taken a job working for an events service provider at Ernst Happel Stadium, the venue where Taylor’s Vienna shows were to have taken place.
The three Vienna Eras Tour concerts were cancelled, but London mayor Sadiq Khan says her Wembley Stadium shows, scheduled to begin on Thursday, August 15, will “carry on.” Speaking to Sky News, Khan said that London is “looking forward to welcoming Taylor Swift back,” adding, “we have a huge amount of experience in policing these events, we’re never complacent, many lessons were learned after the awful Manchester Arena attack. The police work closely, not just with City Hall, but with councils, but also with those who host concerts, like the Taylor Swift concert coming up over the next couple of weeks.”
“I’m sure Vienna has got its own reasons to cancel the Taylor Swift concerts,” Sadiq continued to Sky News. “We’re going to carry on, working closely with police (and) ensuring that the Taylor Swift concerts can take place in London safely.”
Taylor has not issued a statement of her own at this time.