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Australian Brenton Tarrant, a self-proclaimed supremacist armed with semi-automatic rifles, including an AR-15, killed 50 people in two attacks on a mosque in Christchurch. (AP)The New Zealand police met the Christchurch striker in October 2017 before granting him a firearms license, authorities said Friday, the AFP news agency reported.
Australian Brenton Tarrant, a self-proclaimed supremacist armed with semi-automatic rifles, including an AR-15, killed 50 people in two attacks on a mosque in Christchurch. He had applied for the firearms license in September 2017.
According to a police spokesman, a "gun control team" visits anyone who applies for a firearms license to "inspect the security of their belongings". The police team made the visit in October, questioning Tarrant and performing a "security inspection" of his home, he says.
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During the security check, Tarrant also provided the names of two New Zealand residents, who were also interviewed by the police. The referees "have met the requirements of the process," he said, without identifying the two people. The license was approved in November 2017, he added.
The authorities claim that Tarrant legally bought a number of weapons in December 2017, including two semi-automatic rifles, two shotguns and a levered gun that he used during attacks against mosques while people attended Friday prayers, added the news agency. In the 74-page manifesto he left behind, Tarrant speaks of an "invasion" of India, with China and Turkey, and defines the three countries as "potential enemies of the nation in the East ".
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New Zealand premier Jacinda Ardern, second from right, gestures as she leaves Friday prayers at Hagley Park in Christchurch, New Zealand (AP)Six days after the attack, Premier Jacinda Ardern announced the ban on military-type badault rifles and badault rifles in the country. The new laws should be in place by April 11, she added. "On March 15, our story changed forever. Now our laws will be too. Today we are announcing an action on behalf of all New Zealanders to strengthen our gun laws and make our country a safer place, "Ardern said.
In tribute to the victims, New Zealanders wore hijabs of fortune today and men wore shoulder scarves. They also observed the call to Muslim prayer, followed by two minutes of silence. "New Zealand is crying with you. We are one, "said Ardern in a short speech.
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