A man has been shot dead by police and an officer injured in the western part of Waikato, police have confirmed.
The area is where officers have been hunting for fugitive Marokopa father Tom Phillips but police wouldn’t say if the shooting and the search are linked.
Commissioner Richard Chambers said police were called about 2.30am to a Waitomo address after reports of a burglary at a commercial property.
Stuff understands it was Tom Phillips who allegedly ram raided the PGG Wrightson store in Piopio.
During the response, a man and a police officer were shot.
The man was provided first aid but died at the scene. The officer was taken to hospital, where he remains in a serious condition.
Another person is believed to be in custody.
The owner of Village Bakery Cafe in Piopio said the PGG Wrightson store on Moa St, a few doors down from his store, was broken into last night. The burglary caused the bakery’s alarm to go off around 4.30am, he said.
He checked his security cameras for any sign that the bakery was targeted but nothing had been captured.
PGG Wrightson’s chief executive Stephen Guerin said their Piopio store was hit around 3.30am overnight.
Guerin said the company had a “limited number of facts” and noted police have full control of the site while they investigate.
PGG Wrightson Piopio referred inquiries to the company’s head office.
“A significant police operation is under way,” Chambers said.
“Police ask media and members of the public to respect the police operation and cordons that are now in place to ensure nobody is put at risk.”
Deputy Commissioner Jill Rogers is in Waikato and will update media at 11am, police said.
A police cordon has been set up on Te Anga Rd, between Waitomo and Marokopa. The road has been closed 1km from where the police operation is currently undeway.
The Waitomo District Council said the road closure is likely to be in place for a couple of days.
Te Anga Rd is one of only three roads out of Marokopa. It heads directly towards the Waitomo Caves township, and provides access to attractions such as Ruakuri Cave and Marokopa Falls.
Waitomo District Council Mayor John Robertson said he had been briefed very early this morning by police but he wasn’t able to speak further until officers had addressed media.
Mayor of the Otorohanga District, Max Baxter, said he was “getting the feeling” this morning’s shooting was related to Phillips but knew nothing more than what police had said this morning.
Baxter said he’d been receiving texts and calls for the past several hours and heard “all sorts of rumours” about what the operation is related to.
Minister of Police Mark Mitchell told the Herald he was “getting updates” on the police operation but wouldn’t comment further.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has told RNZ he has been briefed.
He would not give any further comment, leaving it to police to give further details.
Phillips has been on the run since December 2021, when he disappeared with his three children from their family farm in Marokopa.
Jayda, Maverick and Ember were 8, 7 and 5 when they went into hiding. They are now 12, 10 and 9.
Last month, police released fresh footage believed to be of Phillips and one of his children being caught on CCTV cameras using a power tool, suspected to be an angle grinder, to break into the Piopio Superette, a general store he targeted in 2023.
Chambers is in Melbourne attending the funeral of Victoria Police members.
Police said he will return to New Zealand later today.