Office of the Attorney General brings charges 18-year-old planned terrorist attack in Switzerland
An 18-year-old Swiss-German is alleged to have planned a knife attack in the name of the terrorist organization "Islamic State". Now the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland is pressing charges - and accusing him of several serious crimes.
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- The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland has charged an 18-year-old Swiss man with terror preparations.
- The accused is said to have planned a knife attack in the name of the "Islamic State".
- He is also accused of spreading IS propaganda and supporting the terrorist organization.
The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland has brought charges against an 18-year-old Swiss-German from the canton of Aargau. The young man is alleged to have prepared a terrorist knife attack in the name of the "Islamic State" (IS) organization.
As the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland announced on Thursday , the accused is said to have been working on plans for this since the beginning of 2025. According to the indictment, the planned attack was to be directed at randomly selected victims.
Investigation after tip-off from fedpol
The proceedings got underway in June 2025 after the Federal Office of Police (fedpol) received information that the young man could be planning an attack.
As a result, fedpol filed a criminal complaint with the Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland. According to the authorities, the suspect was arrested shortly afterwards with the support of the Aargau cantonal police.
According to the investigation, the accused allegedly took various steps to prepare the attack.
According to the indictment, he obtained instructions for attacks, networked with like-minded people and intensively studied the religious justification for such an attack.
He is also alleged to have ordered a knife on the internet that was intended for the planned attack.
The Office of the Attorney General considers this to be a criminal offence of preparatory acts for murder and supporting a terrorist organization.
Spreading propaganda and transferring money
The investigators also accuse the accused of supporting the Islamic State via social networks.
He is said to have disseminated propaganda videos of the terrorist organization and carried out financial transactions for the benefit of IS.
In addition to the terrorism charges, the accused must also stand trial for depictions of violence.
The federal prosecutor's office accuses him of having produced, stored and possessed such content.
Accused now at large
The young man was initially remanded in custody but was released in December 2025 because, according to the authorities, the legal grounds for detention no longer applied.
With the filing of the indictment, the Federal Criminal Court is now responsible for the proceedings.
The accused is presumed innocent until a final verdict is reached.
