Marokopa fugitive father Tom Phillips: Police search Waikato community only accessible by boat

Police are today at a remote coastal Waikato settlement only accessible by boat in a renewed effort to find fugitive father Tom Phillips and his three children.

Detective Inspector Andy Saunders yesterday said the fresh search had not been prompted by a new sighting but was “simply a continuation of the ongoing investigation”, which began in 2021.

Police will be active in the wider Marokopa area “over the next few days”, conducting inquiries in and around Te Waitere and Te Maika.

In a statement to the Herald, a Waitomo District Council spokesperson said Te Maika – which is located on a peninsula and forms the southern part of the entrance to Kawhia Harbour – is “very isolated, has no permanent residents and is only accessible by boat”.

“Most of the land is owned by the Te Maika Trust ... The Te Maika peninsula also contains significant environmental features which are required to be protected and managed.”

The council said it was unclear how many dwellings and sleepouts were located on Te Maika.

Meanwhile, Te Waitere is located on the southern side of Kawhia Harbour.

“There are approximately 25 houses in Te Waitere, some of which are serviced by a small reticulated wastewater system. There is also a boat club, which holds a liquor licence and holds a number of events in the area,” Waitomo District Council said.

Marokopa man Phillips has been missing with his children Jayda, Ember and Maverick since December 2021.

Ember would now be aged 9, Maverick 10, and Jayda 11.

Tom Phillips, top left, and his three children - Jayda, Ember and Maverick - first came to national attention when they disappeared in September 2021.

Police poured cold water on a possible sighting of Tom Phillips last month after a report of four people in camouflage clothes sitting in a layby on State Highway 4 in the King Country, south of Te Kūiti.

It came after police said an October sighting of Phillips and his three children in bush west of Coutts Rd in Marokopa was “credible”.

Teenage pig hunters captured footage of the quartet dressed in camouflage and carrying large backpacks across rugged farmland.

“This is the first time all three of the children have been sighted, which is positive information, and we know it will be reassuring for the children’s wider family,” police said at the time.

Fugitive dad Tom Phillips and his three children were spotted tramping in the Marokopa bush in October.

The sighting led to a three-day search, including the use of a military helicopter, but “nothing further of significance” was found, police said.

Before the sighting, police alleged Tom Phillips was seen on November 2, 2023, on CCTV after an attempted burglary at a Piopio store.

Security footage from the shop at about 2am showed a masked pair, believed to be Phillips and one of his children, smashing the front glass and fleeing north after the alarm was set off.

He is also accused of robbing a bank and shooting at a supermarket worker in Te Kūiti in May 2023.

Phillips vanished for the first time with his three young children on September 11, 2021.

The family returned home three weeks later, but on December 9 an arrest warrant was issued for Phillips after he failed to appear before court.

In a video message last year, the children’s mother Cat said: “I am standing here before you today begging you for your help to bring my babies home.

“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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