Vienna, Oct 14 (IANS): Austrian security authorities have identified a 20-year-old Swiss national as a suspect in connection with a series of recent bomb threats targeting train stations and other institutions in the country, Austria's interior ministry said on Monday.

The authorities have been investigating a total of 27 anonymous bomb threats, sent via email, against train stations, schools and shopping centers across Austria since September 30, the ministry said in a statement, Xinhua news agency reported.

The threats forced evacuations and temporary shutdowns of train stations, with around 450 trains and thousands of passengers affected by the first five bomb threats against train stations, Austrian broadcaster ORF said, quoting data from Austrian Federal Railways (OeBB).

The interior ministry said a European arrest warrant for the suspect, who is in Switzerland, has been sent to the Swiss authorities for review and enforcement.