Marokopa reward expired: 'The children need a future,' says mayor

Residents of Marokopa woke this morning with an $80,000 reward for the whereabouts of fugitive father Tom Phillips now expired.

Police didn’t have a breakthrough yet but said there were at least 50 pieces of information that were worthy of consideration and that they still needed to follow up on.

1News reporter Simon Mercep has been in the district and said on Breakfast this morning that the main concern for people in the region was the wellbeing of the three children who were believed to be still with their father.

"It seems almost certain that someone is helping him, so perhaps issues like food, shelter and clothing may be taken care of," Mercep said.

A member of Tom Phillips’ family has said that he was home-schooled and so was most likely home-schooling the children.

Mercep spoke to Waitomo District Mayor John Robertson who urged Phillips to think about the long-term future of his children.

"Going on the run from police is not the way to resolve it. He needs to come back, face the consequences, but think of the children in particular. They need a future — to start living as normal children would in our society,” Robertson said.

Mercep said that this was a view widely shared in the region, as well as around the country.

According to Mercep, police have said the lack of any crucial developments in the case was most likely due to Tom Phillips’ character which they described as mistrustful of authority, preferring to exist out of the mainstream, and wanting to live off the grid.

"He appears to be, from what they say, an independent, determined, person — as are the people who appear to be helping him — and that gives us a clue as to why this reward has not swayed them," Mercep said.

According to a statement from Phillips’ mother at the start of the disappearance, Tom Phillips did have custody of the children, but now police are saying he no longer has legal custody as he has defied the family court.

It was now a matter of police working through the information that they have received.

"In the meantime, they’re not having such a physical presence in the region, but they still think that the western Waikato district and surrounding areas is where the children are most likely to be.

"For the time being it looks like we still have a case of a very determined parent wanting to keep his children hidden from mainstream society," Mercep said.

"Police will carry on working their way through all these pieces of information but, how long this will go on for, it’s so hard to predict."