Screengrab from a video showing Thomas Callam Phillips (R) and his three children during a sighting in New Zealand's North Island on October 3, 2024. The four had been missing since 2021.
Credit: X/@anitaklab
When Thomas Callam Phillips disappeared with his three kids — Ember (5), Maverick (7), and Jayda (8) — in New Zealand in September 2021, little did anyone know that it would mark the beginning of a multi-year saga that, even today, remains unresolved.
When his car was reported abandoned on a beach three years ago, and Phillips and his children were reported missing, the New Zealand police left no stone unturned and launched a three-week rescue operation that moblised helicopters, drones, and rescue teams to scour the coastline in search of the missing family.
As the cops appeared to lose hope, fearing that the family was lost at sea, out popped Phillips and his kids out of nowhere. At the time, the father of three told the police that he and his children had been camping in the bushland.
However, the New Zealand police were having none of it, and Phillips was charged with wasting police resources and was given a date to appear in court and explain himself.
But, before that day came, Phillips disappeared with his three children again... this time, for good.
Or did they?
Last week, a teenager in New Zealand's rugged North Island went hunting on their 8,500-acre family property in the Marokopa area, but instead of game, spotted four figures carrying backpacks.
Clad in camouflaged gear, and with a long beard protruding below his mask, a man led the four-member pack, three masked-up children following the man's lead.
Thinking the four to be poachers and assuming that they were not too keen to talk, the teen filmed the four on his phone.
While not many would've connected the odd sight with a family that disappeared years ago, the New Zealand police instantly knew what they were looking at when they got the video clip.
For three long years, the New Zealand police had been using helicopters, planes, and rescue teams to investigate sporadic sightings, but to no avail.
That, however, could change now, with the latest sighting believed to be the first concrete evidence that the family is alive and still around.
Yet, finding them could be easier said than done — a three-day search following the October 3 sighting was fruitless exercise. In addition, there are difficulties associated with finding the family in the wilderness.
To start with, New Zealand's North Island, where the four are believed to be holed up, is a harsh, wild country, with awe-inspiring vistas that served as the backdrop of Peter Jackson's epic The Lord of The Rings and The Hobbit trilogies.
It's easy to get lost there, New Zealand police told CNN, and even easier to hide in, if anyone is so inclined.
And it does seem like Phillips and his family don't want to be found — in the three years since their disappearance, the chargesheet against Phillips has only grown, with authorities now believing that the father of three robbed a bank in May 2023, stole a quad bike November 2023, and vandalised retail locations across the Waikato region in North Island in search of supplies.
Thomas Callam Phillips.
Credit: X/@anitaklab
Given Phillips' criminal activities, police now fear that the father is encouraging his children — aged 8, 9, and 11 now — to turn to criminal behaviour too.
Fears about the children's safety isn't lost on the mother either. For the better part of three years, Cat, the mother of the three children, had kept a low profile, releasing only written statements appealing for help.
However, in June this year, she introduced herself in a Facebook video and issued an impassioned plea for help in locating her children. Although she, to the best our knowledge, had not commented on the latest sighting at the time of writing this, she had earlier said, "I’m standing here before you today, begging you for your help to bring my babies home."
Police say more resources are required to conduct a thorough search of the area, but added that a general call-out might help boost search party numbers on the ground by roping in volunteers.
Even the use of volunteers, however, could prove tricky: the mayor of the region, Max Baxter, told CNN, "For an inexperienced person out there, you could find yourself two meters off the track and may not find the track again. We’re talking very, very deep bush and rugged countryside."
What complicates matters even further is that police suspect that Phillips is receiving help from unknown persons to remain in hiding.
"This is not a big country we’re talking about. It’s very surprising that they haven’t been found, particularly since the number of sightings are in a very similar area. We absolutely believe that somebody, or some people, are helping them. Tom still has a number of supporters out there believing that he is doing the right thing for him and his children," Lance Burdett, a former detective inspector and the lead crisis negotiatior for the New Zealand police, told CNN.
Even the community in the region is divided on the issue: while some believe Phillips should give up his children, others believe Phillips is right in defending his rights as a father.
Others, meanwhile, just want the police operation, which has popped up sporadically with every sighting, to go away for good.
Will the missing family be found before any tragedy befalls them? Police remain hopeful, but cautious in their outlook as the search continues for the 'missing' family.