The family of the author of the massacre in New Zealand apologized for the "irreparable" damage: "The trip abroad has changed"

Brenton Tarrant's grandmother said that she was "broken" and recalled that he was a "normal kid" who enjoyed video games.

The Australian family Brenton Tarrant, the extreme right-wing extremist who killed 50 people Friday in two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, apologized for the "irreparable" damage. At the same time, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced that the bodies of the victims of the terrorist attack would begin to be delivered from Sunday.

The grandmother of the attacker, Marie Fitzgerald, 81, recalled that she was taking care of the accused and her sister when they were children. In a dialogue with the Europa Press agency, he stated that the shooter was "a normal child" who liked computers. But for the woman, what happened last Friday has no turning back: "Everything has totally changed".

"Since I was abroad, I think this guy has completely changed the boy we met," he said. The Australian began traveling after the death of his father several years ago and was living recently in Dunedin, New Zealand. According to her grandmother, she returned to Australia a year ago for her sister's birthday and did not seem to have changed. "It was only himself," he said on the local channel Channel 9.

"It's very hard to admit that any of our family could do something like this," he added from his home in Australia, in the state of New South Wales.

At this difficult time, his uncle, Terry Fitzgerald, said that the only thing he can think of now is the victims: "We are sorry for these families, for the dead and wounded." The chief of the operation, Mike Bush, said that 36 people were still hospitalized and that two of them were in critical condition.

The attacks took place on Friday as hundreds of Muslims prayed in two mosques located in central Christchurch, the largest city on the South Island of New Zealand.

On Saturday, the authorities sued for murdering Brenton Tarrant, a 28-year-old Australian who was responsible for the murder. When he was tried in city courts, the man showed no emotion and made an allusive gesture to the "white supremacy".

At the same time, New Zealand's Minister Jacinda Ardern called the shooting a "terrorist attack". At a press conference, the president said the defendant had two semi-automatic rifles and two licensed shotguns. He is committed to changing the laws on the possession of firearms in the country.

"The accused of the murder did not attract the attention of the intelligence services – nor the police – on their extremism," added the official, adding that the journalist had no criminal record.

In addition to Tarrant, three other people were arrested on Friday. One of them had arrived armed to badist children and was released shortly thereafter. The other two are a man and a woman who were arrested near the police cordon in a car with multiple guns, although, for the time being, the police estimate that none of them are known to them. is involved in the attack.

In addition, Ardern announced that the bodies of the victims would begin to be delivered to their families from this Sunday. The mayor of Christchurch, Lianne Dalziel, announced a few minutes before her mayor works so that the victims can be buried as soon as possible and in accordance with Muslim traditions.

(TN)