In a tragic end to a case that has captivated New Zealand for nearly four years, fugitive father Tom Phillips was shot dead by police after a burglary on Monday. Phillips had been on the run with his three children since 2021. One of the children was with Phillips during the exchange of fire near Piopio on Monday, while the two others remained missing for hours after his death.
The long-running mystery over Phillips and his children’s whereabouts has prompted multiple searches, offers of rewards, and pleas for information from family members and the police. New Zealand struggled to understand how, in a country of close-knit communities, Phillips could have evaded detection.
