Court adds 49 murder charges, orders mental assessment for suspect in New Zealand shootings

A court added 49 murder charges and a required mental fitness assessment for a man accused of killing 50 people in a mass shooting at a pair of mosques in New Zealand last month. 

Australian Brenton Tarrant appeared in the New Zealand court on Friday via video from the country’s only maximum-security prison, Reuters reported. He is reportedly under constant surveillance. 

{mosads}He was previously charged with just one count of murder. Police also added 39 attempted murder charges. 

Some family members of shooting victims and survivors of the incident were present in the courtroom. 

Tarrant will be represented by two lawyers, although he reportedly wanted to represent himself. Legal experts said he might want to use the trial as an opportunity to espouse his beliefs, according to Reuters. 

Around the time he allegedly killed the worshipers in Christchurch, New Zealand, he also allegedly posted a manifesto outlining his white nationalist and Islamophobic beliefs.