Christchurch killer Brenton Tarrant sent a farewell note to his mother

NZ gunman Brenton Tarrant sent mum farewell message before the attacks, warning she would read ‘terrible things’ about him.

Christchurch gunman Brenton Tarrant.

Brenton Tarrant sent a farewell note to his mother, warning her she was about to hear “the most terrible things’’ about him, immediately before he stormed two Christchurch mosques and killed 51 people.

As the 28-year-old prepares to face trial in New Zealand after pleading not guilty to 51 counts of murder, fresh details have emerged about the elaborate plans he undertook on the day of the ­attack, including sending what was in effect a goodbye note to at least one member of his family.

The Weekend Australian can reveal that on March 15, the day of the attack, Tarrant sent his mother, Sharon, a message warning her of the coming maelstrom.

The note was short and believed to be an email or sent via Facebook messenger.

MORE: The Killer Within Part One

It is understood it did not ­directly reference his plans to massacre Muslim worshippers at Christchurch’s Al Noor Mosque and Linwood Islamic Centre.

Two sources familiar with the message described it as a “farewell note’’. In it, Tarrant warned his mother she was about to see and read “the most terrible things’’ about him.

He told her he had ­decided on his purpose and it was no reflection on her.

He told her to get on with her life and that he loved her. Ms Tarrant declined to comment publicly for this story.

It is understood her son also sent a note to his sister Lauren expressing similar sentiments, although this could not be verified.

The former Grafton local ­planned meticulously for the ­attacks, which also left 49 people injured. He obtained at least five high-powered long firearms and trained for months learning to use them. He scrawled far-right messages across his weapons and live-streamed the attacks to his Facebook page via a GoPro ­attached to a helmet.

He announced his intention to storm the mosques moments before he started shooting.

“Well lads, it’s time to stop shitposting and time to make a real life effort post,” Tarrant posted on March 15. “I will carry out an ­attack against the invaders, and will even live-stream the attack via facebook. The facebook link is below, by the time you read this I should be going live.”

Tarrant wrote a 74-page manifesto he said explained him and his crimes. He posted the docu­ments online prior to his attack.

His note is understood to have triggered a frantic sequence of events that afternoon. His mother, a teacher at a NSW north coast high school, was working when she got the message and sought desperately to contact police.

It is understood she drove to a nearby police station, only to find it closed.

The Weekend Australian has been told she waited while officers from nearby Yamba police station drove to meet her. Once Tarrant’s apparent role in the killings became clear, his mother was met by officers from the Joint Counter Terrorism Team.

In the months leading up to Tarrant’s attack, his family had become increasingly worried about him. He was living in ­apparent isolation in Dunedin, on New Zealand’s South Island.

The money he had inherited following the 2010 death of his father, Rod, which he had used to fund his travels, had all but run out. His lease was due to expire and that, coupled with his ­dwindling finances, seems to have influenced the timing of his attack.

Multiple sources have told The Weekend Australian that the former personal trainer also spoke of going to Ukraine, which has been riven by conflict since 2014 that has drawn in Russian ultra-­nationalist groups and pro-Ukrainian neo-Nazi militias.

It is not clear whether it was an idle thought or a serious plan and sources familiar with Tarrant’s correspondence leading up to the attack offered differing accounts.

One source told The Weekend Australian that Tarrant expressed interest in joining one of the militant groups, although it is not known which one.

However, a government source cast doubt on that, saying there was nothing in Tarrant’s correspondence that indicated he planned to fight.

Since his arrest, Tarrant has become a source of inspiration for a new generation of right-wing extremists. An investi­gation by The Wall Street Journal has linked him to at least three attacks, including the Aug­ust shooting of 22 people in El Paso, Texas, by 21-year-old Patrick Crusius.

“In general, I support the Christchurch shooter and his manifesto,’’ Crusius wrote in his own document.