Overview

• A police officer was shot in the head and shoulder with a high-powered rifle during a stop near Piopio and remains in critical but survivable condition after surgery, according to authorities.
• Police say they spiked a quad bike leaving a farm supply store, the first officer was fired on at close range, and a second patrol engaged the gunman who died at the scene.
• Formal identification of the deceased is pending, one child at the scene was uninjured and taken into care, and multiple firearms were recovered.
• Search teams later located the remaining two children unaccompanied at a remote campsite in rugged bushland, and they are now receiving support.
• Phillips had been wanted since December 2021 for taking his children and alleged armed offences, with rare sightings including late-August CCTV, and police are examining whether he received local assistance to evade capture.