Christchurch mosque shooter to face 50 murder charges

CHRISTCHURCH - Brenton Tarrant, the white supremacist who killed 50 people at two mosques in New Zealand last month will be charged with 50 counts of murder before a court appearance on Friday.

According to New Zealand police, the additional charges would relate to attempted murder as well and subsequently, if found guilty, Tarrant could be the first person sentenced in a New Zealand court to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

"The man arrested in relation to the Christchurch terror attacks will face 50 murder and 39 attempted murder charges when he appears in the High Court in Christchurch on Friday," they said in a statement and added that further charges were being considered without specifying them.

The 28-year-old will appear at the High Court in Christchurch on Friday morning by video from prison in Auckland and is unlikely to enter a plea. The short procedural hearing will be used to fix dates for his future court appearances; the court has now barred media from filming or photographing the suspect as well.

A note from the court this week said Friday's appearance was likely to be brief and would "ascertain the defendant's position regarding legal representation" and other procedural matters.

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The Australian, branded as a terrorist, was only charged with one murder in his first appearance before the Christchurch District Court the day after the shootings.

The March 15 carnage had left 50 worshippers dead at two separate mosques in Christchurch in an incident that sent shockwaves across the world and prompted legislative oversight on gun control in New Zealand.

New Zealand's Corrections Department announced last month that Tarrant was segregated from other prisoners and is being under supervision constantly, either directly by staff or via surveillance cameras.

It said he had no access to television, radio or newspapers and no visitors. He sacked a court-appointed lawyer after his first court appearance and so is likely to represent himself during the trial period.