New Zealand’s Ministry for Children, Oranga Tamariki, is caring for three children who were found after spending almost four years living in remote bushland with their father, who was shot dead by police on Monday.
The agency said it had worked with police for years preparing for the moment the children were located and has a plan in place to safeguard their privacy and wellbeing. The children — Jayda, 12; Maverick, 10; and Ember, 9 — are together, settled and engaging with staff, Oranga Tamariki regional commissioner Warwick Morehu said.
Police Commissioner Richard Chambers said the three were located after their father, identified as Tom Phillips, broke into a store in Piopio and shot at officers. Phillips was shot dead by police. Jayda was with her father at the time of the shooting and provided information that helped officers locate a second campsite where the other two children were staying.
Chambers said the campsite where two children were found was in deep bush about 2 kilometres from where Phillips was shot. Officers approached the site cautiously because they had been told firearms were present. Multiple firearms were found at the campsite, he said, and police are investigating how Phillips obtained access to the weapons and whether others were involved.
‘‘During the last four years we have worked alongside our colleagues at police in preparation for these children being located and we have a plan in place,’’ Warwick Morehu said, declining to give further detail so as not to compromise the children’s privacy. He said the ministry’s ‘‘sole focus’’ was safeguarding the children and providing whatever assistance they need for however long it is required.
Ōtorohanga district mayor Max Baxter said police had ‘‘no alternative’’ but to return fire after an officer was shot at, and said local concern has quickly turned to the needs of the children. ‘‘They have a lot of recovery to do in this. They've lost a son, and a brother. So the family needs that time to mourn the loss of a loved one and get used to having their children, or grandchildren, back after four years,’’ he said.
The family disappeared from the rural Waikato town of Marokopa on Dec. 9, 2021. Police say the first confirmed sighting of all three children with Phillips after that disappearance was on Oct. 3, 2024, when they were observed walking through farmland near Marokopa. Over the intervening years, officers repeatedly searched the region and now say it is ‘‘highly likely’’ they had been very close to the family on more than one occasion.
Police Minister Mark Mitchell commented on the likely impacts on the children, saying they had ‘‘seen and been exposed to things that children in our country should not be.’’ Authorities have said the children will be given time to settle and will be interviewed at an appropriate point as part of the wider investigation.
Chambers said investigators will work over coming months to establish how Phillips moved around the region, what transport he may have used, who, if anyone, assisted him, and how he accessed multiple firearms. He rejected any attempt to portray Phillips as a hero, saying anyone who uses high-powered rifles against police is not deserving of such characterisation.
Police have released images from the remote campsites that show quad bikes and makeshift bedding among native bush. The children’s mother has not been publicly confirmed as reunited with them; authorities have not disclosed whether contact has been made. Oranga Tamariki said it would not provide further personal details, citing its duty to protect the children’s privacy.
The investigation into the shooting and the circumstances that led to the family’s disappearance and extended time off-grid remains active, with police continuing to gather evidence and interview witnesses over the coming weeks.