Police have announced a $80,000 reward for information on missing Marokopa man Tom Phillips and his three children, who have been missing since December 2021. The children, Emer, Maverick, and Jayda, have been living in isolation for two-and-a-half years without formal education or healthcare.
Phillips does not have legal custody of the children and is sought by police. Acting Detective Inspector Andrew Saunders urged anyone who is helping Phillips to stop and report any information.
The Commissioner of Police will determine the reward and share it if there are multiple claimants. Anyone who has committed an offence in assisting Phillips will be immune from prosecution if they provide information or evidence leading to the children’s safe return. The offer will remain in force until 25 June 2024. Phillips may be armed and should not be approached.
Tom Phillips Charges
• Police appealed for sightings of Phillips riding a red farm-style quad bike.
• Security footage showed Phillips and his children breaking a store window in Piopio.
• Charged with aggravated wounding and unlawful possession of a firearm in an armed robbery in ANZ bank Te Kūiti.
• Phillips and his children disappeared in September 2021. The search and rescue operation was suspended after 17 days when he and the children walked into his family’s farmhouse
• Charged with wasting police resources.
• Failed to appear at Te Kūiti District Court, and a warrant was issued for his arrest.
Photo: Supplied/NZ Police
