New sighting of New Zealand ’bushman’ on the run with his children
A fugitive father has been spotted with his children for the second time in the three years since he went on the run.
Tom Philips took his daughter Jayda, now 11, nine-year-old son Maverick and daughter Ember, eight, from the town Marokpa in the north of the country in December 2021 to live in the wilderness.
The four were last spotted in October, when the children’s mum, Catherine, said she believed her daughter tried to get a ‘message’ out to the public when responding to hunters who took the footage.
It’s now believed they were seen by State Highway 4, south of Te Kūiti, over the weekend.
A police spokesperson said: ‘Police are now working to establish whether this is a credible sighting and are working to rule out other possible scenarios.’
Catherine previously expressed her worry her children are in danger, slamming Philips for ‘child endangerment’.
He was spotted on CCTV as well (Picture: New Zealand Police)
Mum Catherine has pleaded for their release (Picture: Yvette Kelly)
Philips and his three children first disappeared in September 2021 but returned to their farm 18 days later after living in a tent in the dense bushland.
But they disappeared again months later, with the last sighting being December 9, 2021.
Philips then failed to appear in court in January 2022 for a charge of causing wasteful deployment of police personnel and resources.
He is also wanted over an alleged armed robbery of a bank in Te Kuiti in September 2023.
The public has been warned to not approach Philips, despite there having been at least 40 sightings that officers have deemed significant.
Last year, mum Catherine said in an emotional video: ‘They are just innocent children, they do not deserve to be treated this way. They do not deserve the life that is being provided to them right now.’
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