A New Zealand father who absconded with his three children after a dispute with his ex-partner nearly four years ago has been killed by police, authorities have said.

Tom Phillips, who had been on the run in the New Zealand wilderness with his children since December 2021, was shot dead after he was confronted by police following a burglary in the rural town of Piopio, police said on Monday.

Phillips, who had been involved in a dispute over custody of the children, was killed after he fired “multiple shots” at the first responding officer at the scene, causing him serious injuries, police said.

Acting Deputy Commissioner Jill Rogers said Philips, who had not been formally identified, had been accompanied by one of his children, who was not injured in the incident.

Rogers said authorities were urgently seeking to locate his two other children.

“Following the incident, we have been in contact with Phillips’s family and we will be working to provide them with all available support,” Rogers said.

In a statement to Radio New Zealand, the children’s mother, Cat, said she was “deeply relieved” for her children.

“They have been dearly missed every day for nearly four years, and we are looking forward to welcoming them home with love and care,” she said.

Philips’s disappearance from the remote community of Marokop with his three children – now aged 12, 10 and nine – gripped New Zealand and generated global headlines.

Despite a number of sightings over the years and appeals by his family, Philips, who was facing criminal charges including aggravated robbery and unlawful possession of a firearm, managed to continually frustrate efforts by authorities to pinpoint his whereabouts.

Authorities had announced the most recent sighting of Philips less than two weeks ago, releasing security camera footage appearing to show him and one of his children breaking into a rural store.