The $80,000 reward for information on missing Marokopa man Tom Phillips and his three children will come to an end on Tuesday night, but police say they're not giving up on bringing the children home safe.
Jayda, 11, Maverick, 9, and Ember, 8, have been on the run with their father for two and a half years and on June 11 police posted an $80,000 reward for information leading to the safe return of the children.
Their King Country based mother - Catherine, who goes by the name Cat - had been apart from Phillips for almost four years when he initially disappeared with Jayda, Maverick and Ember in September 2021.
He had legal custody at the time.
Phillips sparked a major search and rescue operation lasting 17 days, before he returned home from the bush with the children then-aged 8, 6 and 5 years old.
He walked into his parents' farmhouse with the children on September 30, 2021, before disappearing again with them on December 12, 2021.
Police said Phillips no longer has legal custody and a warrant is out for his arrest on several charges including aggravated robbery following an armed holdup at the ANZ bank in Te Kuiti in 2023.
Det Insp Andrew Saunders told AM on Tuesday that since the $80,000 reward was posted and since Cat shared a heartfelt plea for her children's safe return there had been "a steady stream of information" to police.
However, they are still missing the "golden nugget" to point to where the missing family is.
Saunders said the $80,000 reward, which was targeted at those who may be assisting Phillips, would not be extended beyond 11:59pm on Tuesday.
"We've given them two weeks to come forward," he said.
"We've received over 150 pieces of information, which is very encouraging, and of that about 50 pieces of information will just take a lot of follow up, but we haven't had that one singular piece that points us in the exact direction… There's some good pieces there but just not the golden nugget at the moment."
In a message to Phillips, Saunders said it was "well past time to do what's best for the children".
"It's the children we're interested in. If Tom wants to stay on the run that's fine but let's get the children back safe and sound… This will remain an active investigation until we find Jayda, Maverick and Ember."
There's especially concern for the youngest child, Ember, who will need medical care.
"Ember is asthmatic, as am I, and she needs medical care that cannot be provided by the land," Cat said in the video shared by police. "Many of you are saying that the children are fine, that they're being well looked after. How do you know? Have you seen them? Or is it just bush talk?"
At the same time as the reward offer, police scaled up their presence in the Marokopa area.
But as this reward deadline comes to an end, the police response will be reduced.
