A man who had been on the run with his three children through New Zealand’s remote Waikato wilderness since 2021 was shot dead by police early Monday during a shootout following an attempted burglary, authorities said. One child was located at the scene, two remain missing, and a police officer was critically injured and taken to hospital for surgery.
Police said they were called to a rural farm supply store in Piopio, in the central Waikato region, after reports of a burglary about 2:30 a.m. local time. Officers laid spikes at an intersection to stop a quad bike described in the reports; when the bike came to a halt the driver pivoted and opened fire at close range, Deputy Commissioner Jill Rogers said. Officers returned fire and the offender, later identified as Tom Phillips, was killed at the scene. Officers administered first aid but he could not be revived.
Rogers said one child was located at the scene and was being provided with "wraparound support"; police would not provide details about the child’s location for safety reasons. A cache of firearms was also recovered, and searches were continuing to locate the two other children. "This has been a deeply traumatic incident this morning for those involved. It has been confronting and challenging in a small, rural, isolated location," Rogers said.
One police officer suffered gunshot wounds to the head and shoulder and was in critical condition after surgery, authorities said. Investigators have not released the name of the officer. It was not yet clear which of the three children had been with Phillips at the time of the incident.
Phillips vanished into the Waikato bush with his children, Ember, Maverick and Jayda, just before Christmas 2021 after a fight with their mother, who had sole custody, police and family members have said. The children would now be about 9, 10 and 12 years old. There was little confirmed information about their welfare until October 2024, when a group of pig hunters reported seeing Phillips with the children moving through forest wearing masks and carrying large packs.
Authorities said Phillips had previously been linked to thefts of a quad bike and camping supplies, including headlamps. Police have investigated reports and sightings sporadically over the years but the dense forest, rolling farmland and remote tracks of the Waikato countryside complicated search efforts. On at least one occasion authorities offered rewards for information that led to his arrest, but tips dwindled and sightings went cold.
CCTV footage dated Aug. 27, 2025, that has circulated in media reports appears to show Phillips and one of the children taking items from a Waikato grocery store, police sources said. The footage has been used by investigators to piece together movements in the months before Monday’s confrontation.
The children’s mother, who is known publicly only as Cat, said in a statement she was relieved to be one step closer to her family but also saddened by how events unfolded. "Our hope has always been that the children could be returned in a peaceful and safe way for everyone involved," she said, asking for privacy so the children could "adjust and reintegrate into a stable and loving environment."
Police said a detailed investigation into the burglary, the shooting and the wider circumstances of Phillips’s years on the run is under way. Officers from regional and national units are coordinating searches to locate the two missing children and to gather forensic evidence at the property in Piopio. Local authorities appealed to anyone with information or footage from the area in recent weeks to contact investigators.
The case has highlighted challenges for law enforcement operating in large, sparsely populated areas where people can move unnoticed for extended periods. New Zealand agencies also face scrutiny over how missing-person cases that span years are investigated and resourced, a debate likely to continue as officials disclose more about the search and the circumstances that led to Monday’s fatal shootout.
