New Zealand police say Christchurch accused to face 50 murder charges

The Australian man accused of killing 50 Muslim worshippers in gun attacks on two mosques in Christchurch will face 50 murder charges and 39 attempted murder charges when he appears in court on Friday, New Zealand police said.

“Other charges are still under consideration,” police said in a statement.

Australian Brenton Tarrant, 28, a suspected white supremacist, was previously charged with only one murder following the attack and has been remanded without a plea.

Fifty people were killed and dozens wounded as they attended Friday prayers by a lone gunman armed with semi-automatic weapons. The gunman broadcast his attack live on Facebook.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern described the massacre, the worst mass



shooting by a lone gunman in New Zealand, as a ”terrorist attack” and some legal experts thought it could result in charges under New Zealand's terrorism laws.

Tarrant is due to appear in Christchurch's High Court through a video link at 1000 local time (2100 GMT) on Friday.

A High Court judge said in court minutes this week that the appearance would largely be procedural and that Tarrant would not be required to enter a plea to the charges he faced.

“The principal purpose of the call on 5 April will be to ascertain the defendants position regarding legal representation and to receive information from the Crown regarding certain procedural steps and when it is envisaged those steps will be completed,” said Judge Cameron Mander.