MIAMI GARDENS, FLA. (WSVN) - A South Florida Taylor Swift fan is disappointed she won’t be able to see the artist in Vienna, Austria after the show was canceled due to a foiled terror plot.
Kelly Gonzalez and her friends are die-hard Swifties who flew overseas to see her because the tickets were cheaper than in the U.S., but now it seems they made the trip for nothing.
“In our room, there was a lot of sadness, there was a little bit of tears,” said Gonzalez.
The Miami Lakes resident had her Taylor Swift tickets and was in Vienna when she and her friends learned the concert was canceled.
“When we were walking through the square, there were people who were crying, it’s very emotional,” said Gonzalez.
The news posted on Instagram Wednesday that Swift’s three Austrian concerts were canceled because of an alleged foiled terror plot.
“The Austrian security services got the information that the concert of Taylor Swift will be attacked, due to an incident that will happen,” said Omar Haijawi-Pirchner, Austrian Director of Security Services.
Three teenagers have been arrested in Austria, all accused of planning the attack.
“So we started our investigation and we saw that it’s a broader network of Islamists and yesterday we arrested the 19-year-old, a 17-year-old Austrian guy and we also got the information that the younger guy, a 15-year-old Austrian citizen is also involved in the planning to attack the concert,” said Haijawi-Pirchner.
Investigators say the 19-year-old suspect pledged his allegiance to the terrorist organization, ISIS.
When he was taken into custody, authorities say they found several items in his home that could have been used to build a bomb.
Investigators say the three were radicalized recently by ISIS online and had detailed plans on how to carry out an attack, including targeting an area outside the stadium where fans could listen for free.
“We found a lot of precursors for building explosives and we also found explosive devices that he could use during the attack,” said Haijawi-Pirchner.
The 17-year-old even got a job at the stadium venue, where he had been working for a few days ahead of the concert.
“He had it, he was yesterday in the stadium, so when we arrested him he was already in the stadium,” said Haijawi-Pirchner.
Fans in Austria trying to make sense of it all took to the streets to sing their favorite Swift songs after missing out on seeing the beloved American icon, but Gonzalez said while she is disappointed, she is glad everyone is safe.
“It’s almost a calmness in my heart that something bad was prevented,” she said.
Swift’s next stop on her world tour is London next week and police say, those five shows will go on as there’s no indication of any link to the foiled plot in Austria.
The singer brings her tour to Hard Rock Stadium in October.
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