New images of NZ fugitive dad's camp shed light on how they were living

A 24-pack of Jack Daniels premixed whiskey and cola sits on top of a pelican case, inside a trench.

On the dirt floor lies part of another, crushed pack of alcohol - a 12-pack of Gordon's premixed gin and tonic.

Six bottles of Mammoth iced coffee and chocolate lie scattered, next to a gas bottle and camping stove, all sheltered by a tent and tarp.

READ MORE: What's next for children on the run for years with slain fugitive?

These are among the items seen in the second batch of photos of fugitive dad Tom Phillips' campsite released by New Zealand police on Wednesday.

The images show a campsite approximately 200 metres away from where Tuesday's pictures were taken, across some difficult terrain.

It was in this area where two of Phillips' children - Maverick and Ember - were found on Monday afternoon after the fugitive father was killed in a shootout with police on a remote country road south of Auckland.

Phillips went into hiding with his three children in December 2021 and had been hunted by police ever since.

Detective Senior Sergeant Andrew Saunders said police staff were working in steep and uneven terrain to document evidence from the camp scene.

"It's a very grim, dimly-lit area, surrounded by dense bush," he said.

The Phillips tent was well covered and dry.

"We are currently looking at a number of items at the site. Aside from the burglaries we are now able to link to Tom, it is apparent that he had outside help," Saunders said.

Police removed the vehicles from the scene of the shootout on Tuesday night and were due to continue their examination of the area on Wednesday and Thursday.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Saunders said sleeping bags were found at the scene.

"Sleeping bags there, a tent, appear to be in the same sleeping area," he said.

He added he didn't believe the site was their main hideout.

On seeing the latest photos, experienced bushman Ngahiraka Te Riini described the campsite as "pretty average".

"It looks pretty temporary. It doesn't look like somewhere you would spend a long period of time," he told Stuff.

Riini said that although the site looked better than the one seen in pictures on Tuesday, it was "nothing special".

"I mean, it's dug into the bank, they've got shelter from one side, and then the roof looks alright. But honestly, it looks pretty average."

"That was probably one of the first things I thought when I saw that campsite is that it probably wasn't one of his better ones; he must have had other areas where they were better established than that," he said.

Despite this, Riini said Phillips could have survived there for a while.

"I've seen people living in less than that. I've met a few guys that live in the forest and they get by with less."

The first images of the campsite, released to media and the public on Tuesday, showed an incredibly rugged and remote camp.

At the time, Riini said, it looked more like a makeshift garage of sorts, where the vehicles were stored.

Police Commissioner Richard Chambers told reporters on Tuesday that officers were able to locate the campsite, but were prewarned about firearms on the scene when they were getting the two remaining children out safely.

Before going to the site, Chambers said police teams were told they would find at least one firearm and ammunition at the campsite.

This has since been recovered.

This article was originally published on Stuff.co.nz and has been reproduced here with permission.