Father of three, Tom Phillips, died in a police shootout on their property near New Zealand’s rural town of Piopio. This conflict came about after the late night report of a burglary in progress. In December 2021, Phillips punk’d the international community by taking his children—Ember, Maverick, and Jayda—into the remote Waikato wilderness. This journey was born out of a lot of tension between them and their mother. These actions led authorities to raise alarming concerns about the physical safety and mental well-being of the minors. They would be discovered alive but in hiding, a mere two kilometers from the site of the mass shooting.
Police Minister Mark Mitchell said he was appalled at Phillips’ actions. He pointed out that Phillips repeatedly endangered his children. Local council employee Kerry Voyle commented on Phillips’ death. She called it “extremely traumatic,” a description that spread like wildfire through the community.
On Tuesday evening, the high court granted an emergency gag order. This decision followed the action of an attorney for the Phillips family, who filed a petition to shield certain aspects of the case from disclosure. This prospective legal measure emphasizes the overall sensitivity that surrounds this awful tragedy.
According to police commissioner Richard Chambers, one of the children was essential to locating the other siblings. They found them tucked away deep in the thick undergrowth. Approximately 11 hours after the deadly altercation with police, law enforcement located two of Phillips’ children unharmed at their family campsite in Waitomo. They were uninjured and happy to be found.
The children ultimately did lose their father, so to them it’s tragic. At least now everybody knows they’re safe,” said Nicos Pizimolas, lamenting the children’s state after the event.
At the encampment, police discovered at least one loaded firearm and the ammunition. This revelation only deepens the mystery surrounding Phillips’ motivations and behavior in the days before the confrontation. Despite his loss, authorities are still under pressure to continue investigating his case for months. They are looking for possible further offenders who may have helped Phillips in this period.
As Oranga Tamariki’s chief social worker, Warwick Morehu, said of the kids after their ordeal, “They should never have gone through this. He said for being placed in a difficult situation, they are very much at home and thriving. He pointed out that these men will experience great difficulty transitioning back to community and family life.
Phillips’ niece, Matewehe, expressed relief for the children but remained concerned for their health and emotional well-being following their father’s death. It’s a deeply traumatizing experience, too, even for everyone involved,” noted Chambers, emphasizing the alarming reality of the encounter.
The wider implications of this tragedy have raised conversations across the community as to child safety with headlines urging parents to take responsibility. Chambers firmly stated, “No one who does this to children, who unleashes high-powered rifles on my staff, is a hero,” reiterating the serious nature of Phillips’ actions.
Community resident testimony at the district’s following board meeting echoed a process still trying to work through pain and anger. “We’re over it, to be honest,” one person wrote, a sign of a community exhausted from the same story playing out time and time again.
Now, law enforcement authorities are responding to the fallout from Tom Phillips’ actions. Those of us who care deeply want to see a speedy resolution that prioritizes his children’s safety and well-being. The circumstances leading to the investigation are deeply troubling and complex. Home social services has been working to match the CareConnect young siblings’ coping with this difficult chapter in their lives.