Fugitive Tom Phillips was armed with three guns when he opened fire on a police officer, sparking the shoot out that claimed his life, police have confirmed.
The Marokopa runaway dad had amassed a cache of firearms during his time on the run – with another five guns discovered when police located his children at a campsite hours after his death.
The police investigation into who helped supply Phillips with equipment, potentially including his firearms, is continuing.
Information obtained by 1News under the Official Information Act confirms Phillips had multiple firearms in his possession when he was killed.
Phillips was shot dead by a police armed offenders squad member on September 8 this year, ending nearly four years on the run with his children now aged 12, 10 and 9.
The fugitive, accompanied by his eldest child, was fatally shot after committing a burglary in Piopio.
A local police officer had laid road spikes and disabled Phillips’ quad bike. The father then shot at the officer, firing at least four rounds with a .308 calibre rifle at close range.
The officer suffered a glancing blow to the head from one bullet, while another caused significant damage to his right shoulder.
It’s believed the police car’s laminated windscreen may have saved the officer’s life by changing the trajectory of the bullets.
Moments later a second officer fatally shot Phillips.
The shot officer required multiple surgeries and was discharged from Waikato Hospital on September 26.
Police Commissioner Richard Chambers has said there was “absolutely no doubt Mr Phillips was motivated to kill one of my staff members”.
1News requested more details of the specific weapons Phillips had amassed and how many were fired at police during the fatal shoot out on September 8.
Acting Deputy Commissioner Jill Rogers confirmed Phillips had a cache of eight weapons at his disposal in total. This included three firearms Phillips and his eldest child had taken with when they stole items from the PGG Wrightson farm supplies store in Piopio.
1News asked police to specify the specific types of firearms in Phillips’ possession and whether any were legally owned by the fugitive.
Rogers confirmed Phillips had three guns with him on September 8 but did not answer a question about how many were fired by the father and how many different types of ammunition were recovered at the scene of his death.
The fatal shooting is currently the subject of an internal police critical incident investigation, an Independent Police Conduct probe and a coroner’s inquiry.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has also said he expects there would be a government inquiry of some form into the events that unfolded around the case.
Rogers cited the multiple investigations as the reason why specific details about the shooting would not be divulged.
“While I acknowledge there is a significant public interest in the events surrounding the shooting and the search for Tom Phillips and his children, it is important that these investigations are not prejudiced by premature release of relevant information.
“This means there will be significant restrictions on what information can be made available at this time. Police intends to address the public interest by proactively releasing relevant information when it is appropriate to do so,” Rogers said this week in response to 1News’ Official Information Act request.
Five more firearms found at campsite with children
Rogers did confirm that a further five guns were located by police who located the two younger children at a campsite about 2km from the shooting scene.
The eldest was credited with providing police with information to help them safely locate the siblings in dense bush.
Chambers has said police were warned to expect there was at least one gun at the campsite – in reality the children had been left with five weapons there.
Police are continuing to investigate whether the firearms had been stolen or willingly supplied by an accomplice.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do to try and put the puzzle together in terms of those firearms… There’s a lot of work to do to try and understand who, if anybody, may have been assisting Mr Phillips,” the Police Commissioner said the day after the shooting.
Police have confirmed that members of the elite special tactics group and the armed offenders squad were involved in the hunt for Phillips and his children.
1News asked how many sworn and non-sworn police staff were either on standby or active duty within a 50km radius of the scene of the fatal shooting scene in the early hours of September 8.
Rogers refused to provide this information, saying to do so would risk prejudicing the maintenance of the law.
She did confirm that inquiries into who had helped Phillips while on the run was ongoing.
“Police also continue to investigate the likelihood Phillips received outside support,” she said.
