The man accused of murdering dozens of people in the Christchurch terror attacks has pleaded not guilty to 92 charges.

51 people died in the mass shootings in the New Zealand city three months ago.

A 29-year-old Australian man has been charged with 51 murder charges, 40 attempted murder charges, and a terrorism charge after the March 15th attacks.

He is accused of opening fire with a semi-automatic weapon and broadcasting the killings on Facebook.

The suspected white supremacist appeared in a Christchurch court by video link from the maximum security Paremoremo Prison in the northern city of Auckland overnight.

He made no comment during the court proceedings and the not guilty pleas were entered by his lawyer.

According to local news reports families if the victims gasped in the public gallery when the pleas were entered and the accused gave a small smile.

The court heard that he is mentally fit to stand trial. He is due to do so in May next year.

Prosecutors said the trial could last for six weeks, although the judge said it could be considerably longer, adding that “the scale and complexity of this case makes this challenging.”