CHRISTCHURCH "gunman" Brenton Tarrant was reportedly spotted stalking two mosques dressed as a builder weeks before the attack that killed 50.

Worshippers claimed the suspect, 28, was dressed in "construction clothes" and gave one concerned onlooker a "death stare" during "recces" on the Al Noor and Linwood sites.

Nasin Khan, 59, claimed he spotted Tarrant acting suspiciously while observing Friday prayers on March 8 at Al Noor, the Mirror reports.

Mr Khan added: "I didn’t think much about it.

"But when I saw his photo I knew straight away it was him.

"He must have been watching.”

Nasreen Khanam, 46, said she saw Tarrant near Linwood mosque on the same day while she picked up her daughter from work at a nearby McDonald's.

She told the paper: “He was looking at me really angrily for no reason as I walked into the restaurant, like a death stare.

"I was so scared I ran back to my husband’s car and told him."

Mrs Khanam added that she is "100 per cent" convinced she saw Tarrant and that the look on his face still haunts her.

PLANNED MORE SHOOTINGS

Detectives are also investigating possible sightings at a mosque in Hamilton on New Zealand’s North Island, weeks before Friday's attack.

In a 74-page manifesto he released before the mass shooting, the accused Australian gunman said he was going to attack mosques in Christchurch and Linwood.

He wanted to also attack a mosque in the town of Ashburton if he made it that far.

New Zealand PM Jacinda Ahern refused to mention Tarrant's name in parliament on Wednesday.

She said: "He sought many things from his act of terror but one was notoriety.

"That is why you will never hear me mention his name."

FIRST FUNERALS TAKE PLACE

A father and son gunned down in the terror attacks were this morning the first to be buried.

Khaled Mustafa, 44, and his son Hamza, 16, had moved to New Zealand from war-torn Syria in search for a better life.

The popular teenager was on the phone to his terrified mum telling her about the attack at Al Noor mosque when he was shot and killed.

His brother Zaid was also shot in the attack and attended the ceremony in a wheelchair following the shooting which left 50 dead and 50 injured.

His dad and brother's funeral were the first to take place at Christchurch’s Memorial Park Cemetery – with around 200 mourners gathered as armed police looked on.

Further funerals are expected to take place in the coming days and officials said 29 people were still in hospital with eight in a critical condition.

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