Police in New Zealand have released the first photographs of one of the makeshift campsites where fugitive Tom Phillips and his children were hiding for years before he was shot dead in Waitomo on Monday.
The site, discovered in a remote and heavily forested area in rugged Waitomo, consisted of a small cluster of tarpaulins and tents set up beneath trees, with items including quad bikes, tyres, and cans of soft drink scattered around.
It is one of the many campsites in which Phillips is believed to have been living with his three children, now aged 9, 10 and 12.
Phillips disappeared with his children – Jayda, Maverick, and Ember – shortly before Christmas 2021, and was on the run across the Waikato region, in a case that gripped the nation because of his ability to evade arrest.
The camp was discovered by specialist officers about 2km from the scene where the confrontation happened, after one of the children provided information.
Two of Phillips’s children were located at the site. They were found with the help of his third child, who was with Phillips when he died.
Three firearms, including the weapon used by Phillips in the shooting, have been recovered, along with several others from the campsite.
Police commissioner Richard Chambers said Phillips’s actions had “quite literally put his children in harm’s way”.
“Phillips had no regard for the safety of those children. He seemed to be solely motivated in terms of what he wanted to do and how things were impacting him.”
Commissioner Chambers said the campsite was found inside “deep bush ... not an easily found location for anyone”.
Commissioner Chambers said investigators are also pursuing possible accomplices who may have assisted Phillips, with inquiries expected to continue for months. The probe will look into how he obtained firearms and quad bikes, as well as seeking to identify anyone who helped Phillips evade the authorities.
“[There is] a lot of work to determine whether there is anyone else involved.”
Acting deputy commissioner Jill Rogers said the children were reunited late on Monday and are now in the care of Oranga Tamariki (New Zealand’s Ministry for Children).
“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 the care of Oranga Tamariki, we will continue to work closely with the children, taking the time and sensitivity that is needed after the ordeal they have been through.”
Acting Deputy Commissioner Rogers confirmed that Phillips’s body was removed from the scene late on Monday and will undergo a post-mortem before being released to his family. She said investigators are piecing together the family’s movements and speaking with locals in the area.
Police were responding to a report of an attempted burglary at a rural farm shop in Piopio town, and entered into an armed confrontation with Phillips in the early hours of Monday. An officer was injured when Phillips’s high-powered rifle was fired.
The children’s mother, known only as Cat, said in a statement to state-owned Radio New Zealand that the children had been “dearly missed every day for nearly four years, and we are looking forward to welcoming them home with love and care”.
Commissioner Chambers said Phillips and the children moved around their hideouts frequently through “a challenging terrain”, which hampered the chances of capturing them.
Phillips failed to attend a court hearing in 2022 and has been pursued by police ever since. He evaded authorities by hiding out in Waikato’s thick bush and remote farmland.
