Tom Phillips died following a shootout with police in September 2025. However, RNZ understands his family was not told until after 7.30am, and the mother was not told until after 8am. "Subsequent announcements confirmed that Tom Phillips had been fatally shot during the incident." RNZ asked police why the documentary crew were informed before relatives, and what the text message said. Rogers said the message informed a member of the documentary crew there had been a critical incident relating to Tom Phillips.

Source: Otago Daily Times January 22, 2026 23:56 UTC