Fugitive father shot dead by police after four-year manhunt - as officers FIND his kidnapped children

After the vehicle came to a halt, the father was confronted by a single police officer, who he shot in the head with a rifle.

Another police car then arrived - with officers shooting Phillips dead and taking his child into custody.

His children - Ember, nine, Maverick, 10, and Jayda, 12 - were taken from their family home in December 2021 over an apparent custody battle.

Deputy Police Commissioner Jill Rogers went on to warn of "serious concerns" for his remaining two children.

Police are "actively seeking" them, she said - before they were found at 7am UK time.

"This is devastating news for Tom Phillips' family, and is the outcome that nobody wanted," Ms Rogers had said.

Police went on to confirm they have found Phillips's two other children.

They are unharmed and have been taken for medical checks, several New Zealand media outlets said.

Cat, the mother of the three children taken by Phillips, said she was "deeply relieved that for our tamariki [children] this ordeal has come to an end" in a statement to New Zealand outlet RNZ.

However, shortly before 5am in the UK - or just before 4pm local time - police had said they still had not found the remaining two children.

"We have children that we believe are unaccompanied in the bushes and it is our priority to locate them these evening," Ms Rogers said in a briefing.

Helicopters circled the region, while some 50 officers were deployed to search for them on the ground, she said.

"This incident needs to be resolved now," Ms Rogers added, warning that temperatures were due to fall near freezing point later in the day.

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In a briefing on Monday afternoon local time, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said he was "very concerned" about the two children still missing, as well as how authorities are running out of daylight.

"The whole country is anxiously waiting to hear that the missing children have been found," Mr Luxon said.

"I doubt there is a New Zealander who has not followed, to some extent, the story of the abduction of the children, of whom there had only been intermittent sightings since 2021."

Luxon also paid tribute to the police officer injured in the shooting.

"It is a sad and absolutely tragic event. This is not what anybody wanted to happen today. I think that is a consistent feeling from everybody across New Zealand," Luxon said.

Last month, Phillips's mother wrote in an appeal: "Everyday I wake up and hope that today will be the day that you all come home."

His sister Rozzi told local outlet Stuff: "There's a lot of love and there's a lot of support, and we're ready to help you walk through what you need to walk through."

Police Commissioner Richard Chambers later revealed the shot officer "is conscious and talking to his fellow officers", and confirmed a "significant police operation" is underway.

"Police ask media and members of the public to respect the police operation and cordons that are now in place to ensure nobody is put at risk," Mr Chambers added.

Phillips vanished from the rural town of Marokopa on New Zealand's North Island in December 2021 with Jayda, Maverick and Ember.

The four were believed to have lived in the wilderness ever since, despite numerous police search operations and a NZ$80,000 (£35,000) reward.