Sydney, Aug 9 (EFE).- New Zealand police found two missing children in a remote bushland camp on Monday hours after their father, a fugitive of four years, was killed in a shootout with police.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In December 2021, Tom Phillips fled into bush in the North Island’s Waikato region with his children Jayda, now 12, Maverick, 10, and Ember, 9, after an alleged dispute with their mother. Despite a few suspected sightings and a large reward on offer, they managed to evade authorities. Police suspected they had help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Monday morning\u2019s fatal confrontation along a rural road not far from the Waitomo district village of Piopio, an officer was critically injured when he was shot in the head, Phillips died after he was shot by return fire, and one of his children was recovered unhurt, police said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Police then launched a desperate search to find the other two children before nightfall. The pair were found hours later, alone but physically unharmed, in a \u201cvery remote campsite\u201d at about 4.30 pm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI can confirm that the children are well and uninjured and they will be taken to a location this evening for medical checks,\u201d Acting Deputy Commissioner Jill Rogers said in a third live-streamed press conference, saying there was a \u201cgreat sense of relief.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Burglary tip-off<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The incident began when police were called out to a burglary at a commercial premises in Piopio at about 2.30 am on Monday morning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Based on the descriptions of a male figure and a smaller person, who fled with stolen items on a quad bike, police suspected the man may be Phillips and deployed additional staff and a helicopter, Rogers said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Police laid road spikes, which were then run over by the quad and it came to a stop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe man fired multiple shots at the first attending police officer as he exited his vehicle at the scene, striking him in the head and shoulder,\u201d Rogers said. \u201cA second police unit was immediately on the scene; police fired at the armed man, incapacitating him. Police provided first aid, however the offender died at the scene.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Multiple firearms were reportedly recovered by police on and around the quad bike, and the wounded police officer was airlifted to hospital at 4.50 am.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe has sustained significant injuries that will require many surgeries. They are described to us as being survivable but (\u2026) he has been shot multiple times with a high-powered rifle,\u201d Rogers said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Photos of the scene show a police car with right-hand-side doors open on a rural road and its windscreen dotted with bullet holes. In front of it a quad bike is seen loaded with items, and what looks to be a firearm lays nearby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n About 50 staff, including armed offenders squad and special tactics teams, were deployed to the area to search for the two children still missing as temperatures were expected to drop to a \u201cfreezing\u201d 1 degree Celsius overnight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe have about three hours of daylight left,\u201d Rogers told reporters not far from the incident site as a police Eagle helicopter could be heard flying nearby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The child found at the shooting scene was being cared for and provided “crucial” information, helping police to narrow down the search area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018Not the outcome we wanted\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n During the search for the missing siblings, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon told reporters that \u201cthis morning\u2019s events are not how anyone would want this to end.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI doubt there is a New Zealander who has not followed to some extent the story of the abduction of the children, of whom that has been only intermittent sightings since December 2021. Social services are working with police and are on standby to support them,\u201d he said, adding police were \u201cdevastated\u201d about their colleague.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The mother of Phillips\u2019 children, known as Cat, told public broadcaster Radio New Zealand after the shooting that she was both relieved and sad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFirst and foremost, we are deeply relieved that for our tamariki (children) this ordeal has come to an end. They have been dearly missed every day for nearly four years, and we are looking forward to welcoming them home with love and care,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “At the same time, we are saddened by how events unfolded today. Our hope has always been that the children could be returned in a peaceful and safe way for everyone involved.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n She said the children have “endured a long and difficult journey, and we ask for privacy as we help them adjust and reintegrate into a stable and loving environment.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Waitomo District Mayor John Robertson told local media that Phillips\u2019 death was \u201creally the worst outcome we could have expected.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rogers acknowledged all those involved in the difficult and complex four-year investigation, adding \u201ctoday\u2019s outcome is not the one we wanted.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Extensive scene examinations and investigations were ongoing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n