BREAKING: Missing family spotted in NZ after 3 years 😱🌲

After nearly THREE YEARS vanished without a trace… the Phillips family — fugitive dad Tom and his three young kids — have been SEEN ALIVE deep in a remote New Zealand forest!

They disappeared just before Christmas 2021, sparking one of the country’s biggest manhunts. No contact. No sightings of the children together… until now. Pig hunters stumbled upon them trekking through thick bush, masked up, carrying heavy packs like ghosts in the wilderness.

How did they survive FOUR winters in freezing isolation? What secrets has the father been hiding? And why did he take them in the first place?

The chilling footage is out there. The nation is stunned. This isn’t over—questions are exploding: Are the kids safe? Was it custody… or something darker?

You have to see this unbelievable update. Click before it disappears

In a stunning development that has reignited one of New Zealand’s most baffling and emotional missing persons cases, fugitive father Tom Phillips and his three children have been sighted alive in a remote forested area of the Waikato region after vanishing nearly three years ago.

The family—Tom Phillips, along with his children Jayda (now 11), Maverick (9), and Ember (8)—disappeared from their home in the isolated rural town of Marokopa on December 9, 2021. Police have long believed Phillips took the children without legal custody following a dispute with their mother, prompting a nationwide search that gripped the nation with concern for the youngsters’ welfare in harsh wilderness conditions.

The breakthrough sighting occurred in early October 2024, when a group of local pig hunters encountered the family trekking through dense bush and farmland near Marokopa. For the first time since the disappearance, all three children were seen together with their father. The hunters captured video footage showing the group—Phillips leading, the children masked and carrying heavy backpacks—moving purposefully through the rugged terrain. The clip, later shared with authorities and broadcast on outlets like TVNZ and 1 News, confirmed the family appeared physically intact but living off-grid in extreme isolation.

This marked the first public confirmation that the children were alive and with their father after years of speculation, intermittent unconfirmed reports, and growing fears they may not have survived the harsh New Zealand winters. Police described the sighting as a significant lead, launching a three-day intensive search operation in the area. Despite the effort, the family evaded immediate capture, slipping back into the wilderness that had hidden them for so long.

The case dates back to late 2021, when Phillips, an experienced hunter and camper with deep family roots in the Waikato farming community, vanished with the children—then aged 8, 7, and 5—shortly before Christmas. Authorities stated he did not have legal custody, and the disappearance followed a family court dispute with the children’s mother. Initial searches focused on the western Waikato’s dense bush, farmland, and coastal areas, including a brief earlier incident in September 2021 when Phillips’ vehicle was found near a beach, but he reappeared weeks later.

Over the following years, the manhunt became one of New Zealand’s most high-profile. Police offered rewards up to NZ$80,000 for information, deployed specialist teams, and appealed repeatedly for public help. Sightings were rare and often unverified until the October 2024 encounter. Phillips was also linked to an alleged bank robbery in September 2023, adding a criminal dimension to the already complex custody-related case.

Surviving in the remote King Country and Waikato bush for extended periods posed immense challenges: freezing temperatures, limited food sources, and no access to medical care or education. Experts and locals familiar with the terrain expressed astonishment at how the family endured multiple winters without detection. Phillips’ survival skills—honed from years of hunting and outdoor living—were credited by some observers as key to their evasion.

The children’s mother and extended family maintained public silence at times but occasionally spoke out, urging Phillips to return the kids safely. Relatives expressed profound worry over the lack of schooling, healthcare, and normal childhood experiences. One family member told media the prolonged separation had taken an emotional toll, with hopes that any sighting would lead to a peaceful resolution.

Following the October sighting, police released additional details and appealed for calm while intensifying efforts. New Zealand’s rugged landscape—thick native bush, steep hills, and vast private farmland—made large-scale searches difficult, often relying on tips from hunters, farmers, and locals. The family was believed to move frequently, using makeshift campsites to avoid detection.

This case has drawn comparisons to other high-profile parental abductions and wilderness survival stories, highlighting tensions in family court outcomes and the challenges of enforcing custody in remote areas. Critics questioned whether earlier interventions could have prevented the prolonged disappearance, while supporters of the search effort praised police persistence.

As of the latest reports in 2025 and into 2026, the saga took a tragic turn. In September 2025, Phillips was fatally shot by police during an armed confrontation following an alleged attempted burglary near Piopio in the Waikato region. One child was with him at the time and unharmed; the youngster assisted officers in locating the other two siblings, who were recovered from a makeshift campsite in dense forest hours later. The children—now aged 9, 10, and 12—were placed in state care for assessment and reunification efforts with family.

Police released images of the final campsite: a dugout shelter in grim, cold conditions, underscoring the hardship endured. Authorities launched a major inquiry into how the family evaded detection for so long, examining coordination between agencies, child protection protocols, and search strategies. A government-commissioned review, with findings expected by mid-2026, aims to address gaps exposed by the case.

For the children’s mother and wider family, the outcome brought mixed relief and grief. The kids are reported safe and receiving support, but years of lost time and trauma cannot be undone. Public vigils and media coverage reflected a nation’s collective concern, with many calling for reforms to prevent similar prolonged abductions.

The Phillips case remains a stark reminder of the vulnerabilities in family disputes, the difficulties of wilderness searches, and the profound impact on children caught in the middle. As investigations continue and the children begin rebuilding their lives, New Zealand reflects on a disappearance that held the country in suspense for nearly four years.