Supporters of a father who fled to the New Zealand wilderness with his children three years ago use a secret code to alert him when police are nearby and supplies are running low.
Tom Phillips fled into the hills around Marokopa, south of Auckland, with Jayda, 11, Maverick, nine, and Ember, eight, in December 2021 and were feared dead until October 3, when they were found dead. seen wandering around a nearby property.
The teenage pig hunters, who originally thought they were poachers, filmed the family as they walked around dressed in military clothing, hoods and carrying backpacks.
The sighting reignited a police search that had been largely dormant for three years, but the efforts failed and the family has not been seen since.
Some locals think Phillips is a hero who has only tried to protect his children from the family courts, while others believe he should return them to their mother, Cat, and turn himself in.
But everyone agrees that Phillips is getting help from others in the area, citing the unlikelihood of him surviving two freezing winters with young children for three years by evading police.
Now Daily Mail Australia can reveal his aides leave secret signs around his properties to alert Phillips to changes in the situation.
Tom Phillips (pictured) disappeared from the New Zealand town of Marokopa in December 2021 with his three children.
Pictured: The Phillips family walking in the hills surrounding Marokopa on October 3.
One local resident, who did not want to be named, said: “They have codes.”
“Something like a red tea towel on the line today means your supplies are ready.”
“A pair of socks hanging in the window means don’t go near the place because there are police officers sitting there.”
“I know for a fact.”
He described the community as close-knit, friendly and willing to give anyone the benefit of the doubt.
“You know, if you’re on earth and you haven’t been convicted or anything, I think people like that give you the benefit of the doubt, as they say,” he explained.
“They’ll give you a bag of chocolates and some sugar and tea along the way, I think I’d probably do the same.”
The Phillips family has been wandering through farmland and dense forests for three years (pictured: nature around Marokopa)
One local said people have secret codes to tell Phillips when police are nearby. In the photo: the city of Marokopa.
Phillips is wanted by police on allegations of theft and breaching a custody order, but has no convictions.
The man said his main concern would be the children’s well-being because they have been without proper medical care for three years.
“They should go to school,” he added.
“But it’s commendable that he took such good care of the children, because he can’t take them to a hospital without declaring them.”
“Regardless of what the police have said about the man, I think he has done pretty well.”
Daily Mail Australia revealed this week that locals do not believe Phillips was the robber who robbed an ANZ bank in Te Kuiti in 2023, despite police reports.
They know who the real thief was.
Pictured: Two people on a motorcycle, who police say were Phillips and his daughter after allegedly robbing an ANZ bank.
“It wasn’t Tom,” one woman said. “My friend works at the bank and she knows… It wasn’t Tom.”
One of the hog hunters spoke to the eldest daughter, Jayda, as she followed her father through the hills with her face covered with a mask.
They told him the property was private.
She said, ‘Yeah… sure.
The teenager asked: ‘Does anyone know you’re here?’
She said: No, just you.
An $80,000 reward was offered in June 2023 for information that could locate the three children, but it expired after eight weeks with no results.