Tom Phillips and his three young children disappeared from the isolated rural Waikato town of Marokopa on 9 December 2021. New Zealand Police believe that the children were taken by their father to a location somewhere in the western Waikato, after a dispute with their mother. Phillips is alleged to have committed a bank robbery in September 2023, but the first sighting of all three children with their father was on 3 October 2024, when they were spotted walking through Marokopa farmland. However, despite a three-day search of the area, including the use of a military helicopter, they have not yet been located.

Background

Marokopa seen from above Before their disappearance, Tom Phillips lived in Ōtorohanga in New Zealand's Waikato district with his three children.[ They also spent much of their time at the family farm in Marokopa. Phillips had been separated from his wife Catherine for several years and was homeschooling the children.[citation needed] He is an experienced hunter and camper. The Phillips family has farmed in the area for generations.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phillips_family_disappearances

https://www.cnn.com/2024/10/11/world/new-zealand-tom-phillips-missing-children-intl-hnk-dst

https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/532022/missing-marokopa-family-detective-spearheading-the-search-for-tom-phillips-and-his-three-children-reveals-what-he-believes-phillips-motive-is

https://nypost.com/2024/10/11/world-news/new-zealand-mothers-chilling-theory-as-missing-kids-re-emerge-in-bushland-with-father-tom-phillips/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9DnIfQ_EuM (use this one for finding–middle of the story)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0lvbGxGfuY (supportive of the father)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pVjMwhYr7M (too long)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0O0xExooPio (use for starting of story)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jH4E9dM69PI (good mom info)

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/17/three-years-in-the-wild-how-a-fugitive-father-has-hidden-his-children-for-so-long-ntwnfb

https://www.1news.co.nz/2024/10/08/timeline-disappearance-of-tom-phillips-and-marokopa-children/

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/missing-marokopa-family-waikato-ute-owners-plea-for-sightings-after-theft/GBX5NWPJRBAKBIJVA4RKOUDFN4/