The white supremacist who murdered 51 Muslims at two mosques in New Zealand in 2019 has appealed against his life sentence and conviction. Brenton Tarrant, 32, was sentenced to life without parole after he pleaded guilty to 51 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder, and one count of terrorism in connection with the deadliest attack in the country’s history, which was livestreamed on Facebook. On Tuesday, New Zealand’s Court of Appeal confirmed Tarrant filed the appeal last week. A hearing date is yet to be set, and the grounds of his appeal are unclear. But in previous court documents, Tarrant complained of “inhuman or degrading treatment” during his time being held in solitary confinement in the wake of the massacre. Temel Atacocugu, who survived the attack despite being shot nine times, told outlet Stuff that Tarrant was merely filing his appeal to get attention. “I would like to tell him: ‘Grow up, be a man and die quietly in jail, because that is what you deserve,’” Atacocugu said.
