The Australian white supremacist who murdered 51 Muslim worshippers at two mosques in Christchurch in 2019 has appealed against his convictions and sentence of life in prison without parole. Brenton Tarrant pleaded guilty to in March 2020 to 51 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder and a terrorism charge. He was the first person in New Zealand under current laws to be sentenced to life in prison without the chance of ever walking free. New Zealand’s court of appeal confirmed to the Guardian on Tuesday that Tarrant had filed an appeal for both his convictions and his sentence. The court will first consider whether the appeal can proceed because it was filed outside the legislated time frame to do so. The Australian moved to New Zealand in 2017 with a view to carrying out a white supremacist attack. He planned the mass shooting for months, conducted reconnaissance at the mosques, distributed a manifesto expressing his racist views before he opened fire, and livestreamed part of the assault on Facebook. He initially said he would defend the charges he faced but changed his plea on all counts to guilty a year after the attacks. He did not speak in court during the sentencing for his crimes in August 2020. Tarrant’s lawyer has been approached for comment.