A fugitive father who spent nearly four years on the run with his three young children was killed during a police shootout in New Zealand on Monday, bringing an end to one of the country’s most high-profile manhunts . Police said Phillips was fatally shot during an attempted burglary at a supply store, where he was accompanied by one of his children. "We are grateful to see an end to what has been three years of torment for the children’s family." New Zealand Police discovered a makeshift campsite and quad bikes in the wilderness where fugitive father Tom Phillips last hid his children. The children’s mother, Cat, described the news of Phillips’ death as bringing a "wave of complex emotions," according to local outlet RNZ .