Accused Christchurch mosque gunman Brenton Tarrant was a relatively 'normal' person before becoming radicalised while travelling the world using inherited money.
The 28-year-old Australian, who grew up in Grafton, New South Wales, is facing murder charges for allegedly gunning down 50 people at two mosques on Friday in New Zealand's worst mass shooting in history.
In the wake of the attack, those who knew or had come across Tarrant, described him as 'normal' and as a loner, with some saying he had never showed signs of being an extremist.
Tarrant had no prior criminal record in either country, and previously worked as a fitness trainer in a gym in his hometown.
In his 74-page manifesto, Tarrant himself claimed he was an 'ordinary, white man,' born into a working class, low-income family of Scottish, Irish and English descent.
He later revealed his far-right, white supremacist beliefs, stating he had been motivated to take revenge on the Muslim community - which he referred to as 'invaders.'
Years before moving across the ditch, he had embarked on a world tour across Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, making stops in Turkey, France, Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, North Korea, and even Pakistan as recently as 2018
Accused Christchurch gunman Brenton Tarrant, 28, appeared to have a 'normal' demeanor before becoming radicalised during his travels to Europe, Asia, and the Middle East
Brenton Tarrant is pictured as a child being held by his keen athlete father who died of cancer in 2010 at the age of 49. He grew up in Grafton in the Northern River region of Australia's New South Wales and worked as a personal trainer before leaving to travel the world
It is unclear when exactly Tarrant moved to New Zealand, but Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the purported gunman had lived in the country 'sporadically,' was not a 'long-term resident,' and had acquired a gun licence by 2017.
He allegedly planned out his attack from his one-bedroom home in Dunedin.
But years before moving across the ditch, he had embarked on a world tour across Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, making stops in Turkey, France, Bulgaria, Greece, Hungary, North Korea, and even Pakistan as recently as 2018.
Foreign authorities are now investigating whether Tarrant had any ties to far-right groups in other countries.
In his manifesto, Tarrant appeared to speak of his travels in a positive way stating, 'The varied cultures of the world greeted me with warmth and compassion, and I very much enjoyed nearly every moment I spent with them.'
But he later admitted his trips through western Europe in 2017 changed his views on immigration 'drastically.'
He revealed his alleged attack was an 'act of revenge on the invaders' for the 'hundreds of thousands of deaths...in European lands throughout history.'
Tarrant referenced the 2017 Stockholm terror attack when an Uzbek man rammed his truck into a department store killing four pedestrians, including an 11-year-old girl named Ebba Akerlund.
At the time of the incident, he was travelling through France, Portugal and Spain.
The New Zealand mosque killer faces an 'unprecedented' sentence that bars him from ever applying for release, but could yet dodge terror charges, legal experts say. Brenton Tarrant (pictured) has been charged with one initial count of murder over the mass shootings that killed 50 people in the southern city of Christchurch and faces life in prison
The Greek writing on one of Tarrant's guns came from the Greek revolutionary Nikitas Stamatelopoulos, who was known as the Turk-Eater for his fighting prowess in the Greek War of Independence
Tarrant grew up in a picture-perfect house (shown above) in Grafton in the Northern River region of Australia's New South Wales
Rifles used in Tarrant's alleged rampage were scrawled with the names of past mass killers and cities where the shootings occurred. One of the weapons reportedly had references to Akerlund.
2010: Brenton Tarrant allegedly receives an inheritance following the death of his father Rodney, 49, which he uses to fund his travels
2016
March 17: Tarrant arrives in Turkey with CCTV footage capturing him at the airport
March 20: Tarrant flies out from Istanbul
March 20: Arrives in Greece, staying in Crete and Santorini for a few days
September 13: Tarrant returns to Turkey for a 40-day stay
October 25: He leaves Turkey
December 28 to 30: Tarrant visits Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro, and Bosnia-Herzegovina by travelling by bus and stops at historic battle sites
2017
Tarrant is believed to have acquired a gun licence in New Zealand this year
April: He returns to Europe visiting France, Portugal and Spain
2018
February: Tarrant spends a night in hotel in the southern Spanish city of Jerez
October: He visits Pakistan and stays at the Osho Thang Hotel in Nagar
November 9: Tarrant visits Bulgaria to visit 'historical sites and study the history of the Balkan country'
November 15: He flies to Bucharest, where he hires a car to drive to Hungary
2019
March 15: Tarrant releases a 74-page manifesto and allegedly livestreams himself opening fire on two mosques in Christchurch killing 50
He expressed his deep disappointment towards right-wing French leader Marine Le Pen's defeat in the 2017 French election, saying he was left 'fuming rage' and 'despair' towards 'invaders.'
He claimed French people were 'often in a minority themselves'.
Tarrant's ideological views have been said to be closely aligned with those of the alt-right.
Greg Barton, counter-terrorism expert from Deakin University in Melbourne, told The Guardian it's possible Tarrant could have been influenced by the far right 'identitarian' movement which originated in France in 2016.
In fact, followers of the movement believe European culture is being replaced with a non-European one - a concept that seemed to be reflected in the title of Tarrant's manifesto, 'The Great Replacement.'
While it's not clear how Tarrant funded his travels around the world, claims have surfaced online alleging he made his money through Bitconnect, a now-defunct cryptocurrency platform believed to be a ponzi scheme, as well as claims he inherited money after his father Rodney, 49, an athlete, who died of cancer in 2010.
In March 2016, Tarrant took a trip to Greece, visiting Crete and Santorini, and also had two layovers at a Greek airport months later in November and December.
That year, he also stayed in Turkey for 43 days over the course of two separate trips, one on March 17 to 20, and again on September 13 to October 25.
CCTV footage of Tarrant walking through the airport in March 2016 emerged following the attack.
Turkish authorities suspect the gunman may have been supported or encouraged by a larger terror organisation.
His manifesto included references to the Ottoman empire, including names of its opponents of from Russia, the Balkans, and Azerbaijan - in their native scripts.
His guns allegedly contained a phrase from revolutionary Nikitas Stamatelopoulos, who was known as the
