Public Apology from Parents of New Zealand Fugitive After His Death

Fri Oct 10 2025 14:18:12 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

The parents of Tom Phillips, who was recently shot dead after a four-year evasion with his children, express regret over the chaos caused by his actions.

Tom Phillips, a fugitive who went missing with his children in New Zealand due to a custody dispute, was killed in a shoot-out with police a month ago. His parents have publicly apologized for the inconvenience and distress caused by his disappearance and actions, reiterating their non-support for his choices. The apology comes after a nationwide search and multiple tense interactions between Phillips and law enforcement while he evaded capture for nearly four years.

The parents of Tom Phillips, who vanished with his three children into the New Zealand wilderness in 2021, have made a public apology - their first comments since their fugitive son was shot dead by police a month ago.

We would like to send our sincere apology... for all the trouble, inconvenience, loss of privacy and property caused by Tom, Neville and Julia Phillips wrote in a letter published on Thursday.

We are truly sorry for all that you had to endure.

Mr. Phillips, who disappeared with his children in part due to a custody dispute, evaded capture for nearly four years, despite a nationwide search and multiple sightings.

We in no way supported him or agreed with any of his actions in the past four years, Neville and Julia Phillips said in the letter published in King Country News, a small community newspaper.

Their son was killed in a shoot-out on 8 September, in which a police officer was also seriously injured. The officer has since been discharged from the hospital, local media reported.

One of Mr. Phillips' children had been with him during the shoot-out and provided information to help locate his two other children later that day.

Before Mr. Phillips and his children vanished, they had been living in Marokopa, a small rural town in the region of Waikato surrounded by dense bush and forested terrain.

Mr. Phillips was known as an experienced hunter and bushman who knew the area he disappeared into well.

Local authorities indicated that the area was difficult and steep, almost completely obscured from all angles by dense bush, complicating law enforcement efforts.

Mr. Phillips and one or more of his children had been seen on several occasions while breaking into stores for supplies during their time in the wilderness.

The police were called when Mr. Phillips was suspected of attempting to break into a store in the small town of Piopio, which led to a chase and the fatal shoot-out.

Despite the tragic ending to their prolonged search, the main goal of the police operation had been to safely recover the children, who were now accounted for.

Previously, his family had publicly appealed for his return, expressing a desire to assist him through the challenges he faced.