INTO THE WILD
Ex of ‘Bushman’ who fled into wild with her kids breaks silence after seeing them for first time in 3 years in new vid
The mum's agony continues as cops failed to locate the family even after the latest sighting
THE ex-wife of a fugitive dad who went off-grid with their kids has broken her silence after watching them for the first time in three years.
Cat, who separated from her now ex-husband Tom Phillps after eight years of marriage, called him a "criminal" for doing what she described as "child abuse".
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Tom has been on the run for more than two years despite CCTV showing him trying to break into a store alongside a child in New Zealand.
He disappeared after robbing a bank at gunpoint and was reported missing along with his kids Jayda, 10, Maverick, nine, and Ember, seven in 2022.
Cops have attempted to locate him multiple times over the past 30 months but the expert "Bushman" managed to escape each time.
They believe he is hiding in remote bushland.
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Cat said she was "overwhelmed" and "relieved" after watching the new video that showed Philips and his three kids in a remote location.
The mum told the : "[Watching them] was overwhelming, it was amazing, it was the best thing.
"It was like Christmas come early and I really thought they would be coming home this time.
"I just broke down … I can’t see their faces but I can see them walking and they’re all there, and they’re capable of carrying their own bags.”
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She has now appealed to the public to help find them and come forward with any details they might have on Philips to stop the "child abuse".
"It doesn’t get any easier ... It’s been nearly three years," she said.
“There’s three children still missing with a criminal at large. They shouldn’t have to worry about where they’re going to sleep that night or whether they’re going to be warm."
But Cat's agony continued as cops confirmed the sighting was credible, but failed to locate the family even after an extensive search operation.
Clad in trekking gear along with rucksacks, Philips along with the kids was seen trekking uphill in the remote area of Waikato's west coast.
While the dad has been spotted a few times after disappearing, the new footage shows him along with his kids together for the first time since they vanished.
It was was shot by a pig hunter, reports.
Cat said she was "eternally grateful" for the person who shot the evidence of the kids being alive.
She added: "I am so grateful to him and I cannot express myself enough because so many people see things out there and they don’t dare to come forward."
Philips is believed to have crafted a network of refuges around the area, report.
In June, New Zealand cops posted a £38,500 (NZ$80,000) reward for information about the whereabouts of the missing dad and his three children.
Hundreds of armed officers alongside choppers have so far scoured the backcountry around Marokopa.
Detective Inspector Andrew Saunders said: "There’s obviously not the gold nugget … of this is where he is. We haven’t got that yet."
He added that Phillips was armed and was a risk to the community who should not approach him.
He said: "We have concerns for the welfare of the children who have been living in isolation for the past two and a half years, with no connection to others and without formal education and healthcare."
Cat also revealed that Philips showed early signs of being a "criminal".
“It should have been stopped a long time ago, I can’t believe that this has been allowed to happen. It’s like the system really doesn’t care," she revealed.
"Regardless of what I have been saying, every step of the way nobody listened to me, I was just ignored, time and time again, minimised, gaslit and yet, look where we are."
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TIMELINE OF HIS DISAPPEARANCE
In September 2021, the dad and his three kids vanished for the first time after his truck was found abandoned at a beach.
When they appeared shortly afterwards he said they were on a camping trip.
Phillips had been due to appear in court charged with wasting police resources but failed to do so.
In January 2022 the dad and the three kids disappeared for the second time - never to reappear again.
Phillips was spotted in the farming town of Te Kuit last year when he robbed a bank at gunpoint before fleeing in a stolen motorcycle alongside a child.
A month later, in August, he was seen speeding in a stolen Toyota Hilux.
He was caught on CCTV in November with a child, trying to break into a store in Piopio.
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Earlier this month he was reportedly seen in Okoroire Hot Springs Hotel in Ōtorohanga but he managed to flee before police arrived.
Concerns are growing over the state of the three children who have not seen their mum since 2021.
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