A 18-year-old man will appear in court today accused of distributing the live stream of the Christchurch shootings.

Photo: Supplied / Minister of Justice

Police said he was arrested during the initial stages of the investigation on Friday.

He has been charged under the Films Videos and Publications Classification Act and will appear in Christchurch District Court.

Police said they did not believe he was directly involved in the attacks.

The live stream video of the shootings in Christchurch has been classified by the Chief Censor's Office as objectionable.

Police said anyone in possession of the video of the shootings, or found to be distributing it, could face imprisonment.

The attack on the Al Noor Mosque next to Hagley Park and the Linwood Mosque on Friday left 50 people dead.

Brenton Tarrant, 28, was arrested and has appeared in court charged with murder.

Police said one other person arrested on Friday was facing charges not directly related to Friday's events.

The person is in custody and those matters are currently before the court, they said.