The dramatic shootout on Monday which resulted in the recovery of the Marokopa children has gripped the nation and made headlines internationally.
Fugitive father Tom Phillips was shot dead by police after opening fire with a high powered rifle on a police officer, who remains in hospital.
Tom Phillips' eldest child was found at the scene and they helped police locate the younger two children at a campsite hidden in the bush. They'd been missing for almost 4 years despite desperate pleas from their mother and older sister Jubilee on RNZ's Mata in 2023.
On Thursday, an emergency injunction sought by the Phillips family was heard in the Wellington High Court.
RNZ Crime Correspondent Sam Sherwood has been following the case. Also covering this story is RNZ's Senior Journalist Kirsty Johnson. She has been speaking to experts who are calling for a full independent inquiry into the incident.
WAITOMO, NEW ZEALAND - SEPTEMBER 11: Police at the location of one of the campsites just off the Te Anga Road near Waitomo where Tom Phillips and his children had been hiding for the last four years. Tom Phillips was killed after getting into an armed shootout with Police. 11 September 2025. (Photo by Dean Purcell/New Zealand Herald via Getty Images) Photo: Dean Purcell/New Zealand Herald via Getty Images
