Impact marks on the bank along Te Anga Rd, near Waitomo, show where Tom Phillips’ quad bike may have hit.<\/p>\n
Tread marks from police cars and trailers are still fresh in the mud at the site where police appear to have gathered items<\/a>. <\/p>\n Tracks had been cut in the bush surrounding the clearing, and rubbish and items seen in previous aerial photographs were strewn to one side.<\/p>\n Oil, plastic bins, a milk bottle, tarpaulins, cups, a jigsaw power tool, an air hose, tyres, camping poles and a bike helmet were visible.<\/p>\n Other items include a toilet bowl and black plastic fans strewn across the ground. <\/p>\n Earlier, police would not confirm the relevance of the items they\u2019ve found and whether they were possessions of the family while they were on the run. <\/p>\n Some of the items previously seen in aerial footage this week have been removed, a reporter at the scene said. <\/p>\n What we know so far <\/p>\n Although investigations have revealed many aspects of the Phillips case, some key details will remain suppressed for now after a hearing on an urgent injunction application.<\/p>\n Phillips was shot dead by police on Monday after nearly four years on the run with his three children.<\/p>\n In a standoff, he shot a police officer multiple times. The officer is recovering in hospital.<\/p>\n Phillips was found on a quad bike with one of his children after a burglary at a farm store in Piopio. The child helped lead police to their siblings at a bush campsite.<\/p>\n Phillips had been on the run since December 2021, when he disappeared with his three children from their family farm in Marokopa. Jayda, Maverick and Ember were 8, 7 and 5, respectively, when they went into hiding. They are now 12, 10 and 9.<\/p>\n The children\u2019s mother said \u201cthey have been dearly missed every day for nearly four years, and we are looking forward to welcoming them home with love and care\u201d.<\/p>\n The children are now in the care of Oranga Tamariki.<\/p>\nItems believed to have been found by police investigating the Tom Phillips case. <\/p>\n
An array of rubbish and items have been found.<\/p>\n
Police gather items at a site off Te Anga Rd, near Waitomo, where Tom Phillips and his children had been hiding. Photo \/ Dean Purcell<\/p>\n