Advertisement

Why court photos of the alleged New Zealand mosque shooter’s face are blurred

Click to play video: 'Suspect in New Zealand mosque shootings makes court appearance'
Suspect in New Zealand mosque shootings makes court appearance
WATCH: Suspect in New Zealand mosque shootings makes court appearance – Mar 15, 2019

Court photos of the man accused in the Christchurch mosque terror attack have been altered not to show his face due to an order from a New Zealand judge.

Brenton Harrison Tarrant, 28, has been charged with murder in relation to the massacre on Friday, in which 49 people were killed and 42 injured.

Images captured by media outlets during that court appearance are being published blurred or pixellated due to an order from the judge who presided over Tarrant’s hearing, The New Zealand Herald reports.

WATCH: Police deployed across New Zealand following mosque attacks

Click to play video: 'Police deployed across New Zealand following mosque attacks'
Police deployed across New Zealand following mosque attacks

Judge Paul Kellar allowed journalists to use cameras and shoot video but said Tarrant’s face must be obscured in order to protect his right to a fair trial.

Story continues below advertisement

Kellar has also issued a ban on publishing the name of the man Tarrant is accused of killing. Tarrant did not apply to have the judge suppress his name from the media, Australian broadcaster ABC reports.

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

Get daily National news

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

Tarrant is expected to face additional charges and two others are in custody.

The massacre has prompted an outpouring of grief and anger around the world. Two mosques were targeted in the attack.

WATCH: Tide of anti-Muslim hatred around the world and in Canada

Click to play video: 'Tide of anti-Muslim hatred around the world and in Canada'
Tide of anti-Muslim hatred around the world and in Canada

A video of one of the shootings was live streamed on Facebook by a man identifying himself as Brenton Tarrant. Police have warned the public that sharing the video is an offence and social media companies have said they are trying to scrub it from their platforms.

Story continues below advertisement

Police say responsibility for the shootings was claimed in a manifesto that espoused hate against Muslims and immigrants.

WATCH: Home of suspect in New Zealand shooting searched in Dunedin

Click to play video: 'New Zealand shooting: Home of suspect searched in Dunedin'
New Zealand shooting: Home of suspect searched in Dunedin

Tarrant was remanded into custody and is expected to appear in court again on April 5.

–With files from the Associated Press and Rebecca Joseph

Sponsored content

AdChoices