A long-running manhunt in New Zealand has taken a tragic turn after fugitive father Thomas Phillips was shot dead during an armed clash with police, while two of his children remain missing in freezing conditions.
Phillips, who had been on the run with his three children for nearly four years, was killed in the early hours of Monday after officers responded to a burglary at a farm supply store in the tiny Waikato town of Piopio.
Police say he fired a high-powered rifle at close range, wounding an officer in the head, before being shot himself.
One child was found at the scene and is now in police care, but Phillips’ other two children, believed to be aged 9 and 12, are still unaccounted for.
With temperatures expected to dip to around 1°C overnight, authorities fear for their safety.
Acting Deputy Commissioner Jill Rogers said an extensive search, involving helicopters and specialist police teams, was underway in the rugged terrain near Marokopa, where Phillips had been hiding out.
“We’ve got very young children exposed to freezing conditions. Our priority is to find them as quickly as possible,” she told reporters.
Police have not ruled out the possibility that others may be helping the children, given suspicions that Phillips had received support during his years off the grid.
The fugitive’s disappearance first made headlines in September 2021 when he and his children, Jayda, Maverick, and Ember, vanished from Marokopa. Though they reappeared weeks later on family farmland, Phillips was charged with wasting police resources.
By December that year, the family had disappeared again, sparking one of New Zealand’s most extraordinary missing persons cases.
Authorities believe Phillips relied on his bushcraft skills to keep the children alive in remote wilderness, resurfacing occasionally to commit crimes.
He was wanted in connection with an armed bank robbery in May 2023, among other serious charges, including aggravated wounding and illegal possession of firearms.
On Monday morning, police deployed road spikes after spotting a quad bike leaving Piopio. Rogers said the vehicle came to a halt on a rural road before Phillips allegedly opened fire on the first officer to arrive.
The officer, struck in the head, managed to take cover before another officer returned fire. The injured officer was later flown to Waikato Hospital, where he remains in critical but stable condition and is expected to undergo multiple surgeries.
Multiple firearms were recovered near the quad bike, and police confirmed that the child located at the scene was a girl. That leaves a boy and a girl still missing.
Phillips’ sister, Rozzi, confirmed his death, while the children’s mother, known as Cat, expressed both relief and sadness. “We are deeply relieved that this ordeal is finally nearing its end,” she said in a statement to public broadcaster RNZ. “The children have been missed every single day, and we look forward to welcoming them home with love and care. At the same time, we had always hoped for a safe and peaceful resolution.”
The case has gripped the country for years, with frequent reported sightings, nationwide appeals, and even an NZ$80,000 reward for information leading to the children’s safe return.
Just two weeks ago, police released security footage allegedly showing Phillips and one of the children breaking into a store in the same area as Monday’s deadly standoff.
With Phillips now dead and two of the children still missing, police say their focus is clear: “Finding Jayda, Maverick, and Ember remains our top priority.”