Man who killed 51 in New Zealand mosque attacks files appeal
WELLINGTON, New Zealand MNP) — The man who slaughtered 51 Muslim worshippers during the deadliest mass-shooting in New Zealand’s history is appealing his conviction and sentence.
New Zealand’s Court of Appeal confirmed Tuesday that gunman Brenton Tarrant had filed the appeal last week. The court said a hearing date has yet to be set.
Tarrant, a white supremacist, gunned down worshippers at two Christchurch mosques during Friday prayers in March 2019. He left dozens of others with severe injuries in the attack, which he livestreamed on Facebook.
The following year, Tarrant pleaded guilty to 51 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder and one count of terrorism. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, the maximum available sentence in New Zealand.
The details of his appeal were not immediately made available by the court.
But in previous court documents, Tarrant, 32, claimed he was subject to “inhuman or degrading treatment” while being held for months in solitary confinement after the shooting, preventing a fair trial. He said he only pleaded guilty under duress.
Tarrant fired one of his lawyers in 2021, and it wasn’t immediately clear if another lawyer was representing him in his appeal or if he was representing himself.
Temel Atacocugu, who survived after being shot nine times during the attack at the Al Noor mosque, told news outlet Stuff that the gunman was playing games and seeking attention by filing the appeal.
“I would like to tell him: ‘Grow up, be a man and die quietly in jail, because that is what you deserve,’” Atacocugu said.
