Police have pointed the finger at Phillips for several crimes, including a bank robbery and a firearms incident.

Many have questioned why the missing family has yet to be found, with some calling for the military to be brought in to find Phillips and her three children.

Burdett said One News a skilled neutral negotiator could approach anyone in the Marakopa community helping Phillips.

“He is someone with a delicate touch.”

The former negotiator said it would be beneficial to have someone who had been through a lot, like himself, and who understood what it was like to return to the real world.

“It’s not about me, it’s about getting a safe finish,” Burdett said Herald.

“Apparently some people say they do it for the most important things. That’s not what it’s about. I have many other things to do.

“That’s the only way it’s going to work out.”

said Waitomo District Mayor John Robertson 1 News there had been no indication that Phillips wanted to come out of the bush and surrender.

“If someone with some mana could help end this, that would be the best solution we could get,” he said.

Last month’s bombshell the sighting was the first between Phillips and all three children since they disappeared in December 2021.

Phillips stayed on the run, regardless requests from Jayda, Maverick, and Ember’s mother, Catan increased police presence around Marokopa in June and the now-expired offer of an $80,000 reward for information leading to the family’s safe return.

An arrest warrant was first issued for Phillips on December 9, 2021, after he failed to appear in court on charges of wasting police resources.

The charge was laid after the then 34-year-old disappeared with his children from a the beach near Marokopa in September 2021 – the discovery of his ute on shore sparked a major search on land and sea – before returning almost three weeks later, saying he needed “time”.

Since his last disappearance, Phillips is believed to have been involved in a number of crimes, including robbing an ANZ bank and shooting a supermarket worker in Te Kūiti last May, which led police to charge him with aggravated robbery, aggravated assault and unlawful possession of a firearm.

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