New Zealand fugitive father dies after 4-year-long manhunt, 3 children recovered

A fugitive father who spent nearly four years on the run with his three young children was killed during a police shootout in New Zealand on Monday, bringing an end to one of the country’s most high-profile manhunts. 

Tom Phillips vanished into the Waikato wilderness with his children shortly before Christmas in 2021 following a dispute with their mother, who held sole custody, according to local officials.

Police said Phillips was fatally shot during an attempted burglary at a supply store, where he was accompanied by one of his children. Phillips died at the scene, and his children – Ember, now believed to be 9, Maverick, 10, and Jayda, 12 – were safely recovered and are now in care, according to officials.

“This is an emotional development. To know the children are safe, and now receiving care after nearly four years, is an absolute relief,” Acting Deputy Commissioner Jill Rogers said in a statement. “We are grateful to see an end to what has been three years of torment for the children’s family.”

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Police were alerted around 2:30 a.m. local time Monday to a suspected break-in at a supply store in Piopio, a small town located in the North Island where Phillips was believed to have been hiding out with his children.

When officers spotted two people riding a four-wheeled bike near the scene of the burglary, they suspected Phillips was involved and deployed road spikes on a nearby street to intercept them, according to a police news release.

Phillips opened fire on officers, striking one in the upper body and leaving him seriously injured. Police said they returned fire and killed Phillips. The child with him was unharmed and taken into custody, while the wounded officer was transported to a hospital for treatment.

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Later that afternoon, officers discovered the remaining two children, a boy and a girl, alone at a makeshift camp about one mile from the scene of the shooting. Both were recovered unharmed, officials said.

Authorities had long expressed concerns about the children’s welfare, saying they were being raised in isolation without access to formal schooling or healthcare.  

Despite several reported sightings in the Waikato region over the years, police efforts to locate the family had repeatedly come up empty.

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Police said Phillips already faced charges of aggravated robbery, aggravated wounding and unlawful possession of a firearm.

Officials recovered three guns at the scene of the shooting, including the weapon he used to fire on officers, and found several more at his camp.

Surveillance footage also captured him previously attempting to break into another retail store on Aug. 27.

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The children’s mother, Cat, described the news of Phillips’ death as bringing a “wave of complex emotions,” according to local outlet RNZ.

“First and foremost, we are deeply relieved that for our tamariki this ordeal has come to an end,” she said, using the Māori word for children. “[The children] have been dearly missed every day for nearly four years, and we are looking forward to welcoming them home with love and care.”

“They have endured a long and difficult journey, and we ask for privacy as we help them adjust and reintegrate into a stable and loving environment,” she added.