One of the Muslim heroes of the Christchurch terror attack confronted terrorist shooter Brenton Tarrant on the third day of sentencing hearings on Wednesday, telling him: “You should thank God on that day I didn’t catch you”.
“You know this face. The one who chased you out,” Abdul Aziz Wahabzadah told Tarrant, who is facing a life sentence without parole for his killing spree, Daily Mail reported.
“You should thank Allah I didn’t catch you on that day. You will never forget these two eyes you run from,” he said.
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Wahabzadah, an Afghani-born Australian citizen, rushed towards Tarrant as he fired on innocent men, women and children at the Linwood Islamic Centre.
Delivering his victim impact statement on Wednesday, Wahabzadah looked Tarrant in the eyes and said: ‘You know the face … the one who chase you out’
The 48-year-old father of four picked up a gun the killer had abandoned, pointed it and squeezed the trigger but it was empty.
Bravery Applauded
He bravely picked up a nearby card [Eftpos] machine and ran outside after Tarrant, who was clad in a bulletproof vest, army clothes and a helmet with a camera in the front.
“At first I thought it was somebody from the government trying to come for our protection, then this coward (said), “Who the hell are you?”, just started swearing at me. I threw the Eftpos machine at his head, then he started shooting at me,” he said.
Aziz said he hurled the gun at the vehicle’s window which shattered and the gunman “got scared”.
Later on, police arrived and arrested the terrorist.
At the court, Justice Cameron Mander praised Wahabzadah’s courage, which prompted applause from the courtroom.
Terrorist Brenton Harrison Tarrant killed 51 Muslim worshippers in March-15 attacks as he targeted Al Noor and Linwood mosques.
Tarrant, 29, now faces life in prison without the possibility of parole. His sentencing will probably take place Thursday at the end of the four-day sentencing hearing.