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POLICE IN NEW Zealand have released images of one of the campsites where a father and his three children spent close to four years on the run.
Tom Phillips’ days as a fugitive came to a bloody end yesterday when he was killed in a police shootout in Waitomo village on the North Island of New Zealand.
The makeshift camp was located by specialist police who were acting on information from one of the children about two kilometres from the scene where Phillips was shot dead by police.
A large-scale investigation is continuing into the shooting, which happened about 3.25am on Monday.
A police officer was seriously injured during the shootout after he was shot at “close range” in the head and shoulder with a “high powered rifle”.
One of Phillips’ children was with him during Monday’s shooting and was taken into custody.
The other two siblings were found at about 4.30 pm after a full day’s search at a remote campsite in the bush about two kilometres from where the shooting occurred.
Since fleeing in 2021, police suspected Phillips of committing several crimes and charged him with aggravated robbery, aggravated wounding, and unlawful possession of a firearm.
A father and his three children who have been missing for three years have been spotted walking through a rural area of New Zealand.
— Sky News (@SkyNews) October 10, 2024
They were seen wearing camouflage gear as they hiked through a bush area near Marokopa in New Zealand ⬇️ https://t.co/VTsZcMawln pic.twitter.com/PQXv8jc9ob
Police believe Phillips disappeared with his three children after losing legal custody of them.
Phillips had “no regard” for the children’s safety and “quite literally put [them] in harm’s way”, Police Commissioner Richard Chambers told reporters.
The mother of the three children, known as Cat, said yesterday she was relieved the ordeal had ended.
She asked for the family’s privacy to be respected as the children reintegrate into a “stable and loving environment” after “a long and difficult journey”.
Chambers said that Phillips and his children “have been very mobile and moved frequently” and that this made it a “challenge” for authorities to find them.
Authorities also took great caution in dealing with Phillips because they knew he was armed and dangerous.
Chambers added that the injured officer “has a long road to recovery” but that his colleagues will be there to “support him at every step”.
The injured officer was described as a “dedicated and caring constable”.
“I’m proud of him, and the officers who arrived on the scene seconds later and dealt to the threat.”
At Phillips’ bush camp hideout nestled in the scrub, the family had access to two red quad bikes, firearms and ammunition, police said.
Strewn across the site was a fuel container, spare tires and empty bottles, photos showed.
But there were touches of small luxuries, including cans of soft drinks.
Three firearms, including the weapon used by Phillips, have been recovered from the scene of the shooting.
Several other firearms were also located from the area where Phillips was camping.
Authorities have said they believed sympathetic locals were assisting Phillips, and they would investigate whether he had help getting hold of guns and a quad bike.
“There is a lot of work to do to try and understand who, if anybody, was assisting Phillips and we will deal with that should that be the case,” Chambers said.
The camp area in Waitomo and the scene of the shooting remain active crime scenes, with forensic staff on site today to gather evidence.
Acting Deputy Commissioner Jill Rogers said a number of investigations are under way into the incident.
“The body of Tom Phillips was removed from the scene late yesterday and there will be a post mortem tomorrow, after which his body will be released to his family,” said Rogers.
“Investigation staff are going over the areas where the family had been staying, and have been speaking with farmers, locals, and workers in the area.
“That work is to help us build an accurate picture of the movements of Tom Phillips and the children.”
Rogers added that the children were reunited late yesterday.
“Our staff described the children as being engaged and they readily spoke with our staff, who provided them with snacks and drinks while they waited to be brought out of the camp site.
“While they are now in care, we will continue to work closely with the children, taking the time and sensitivity that is needed after the ordeal they have been through.”
- With additional reporting from AFP 2025
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