Police are supporting the officer shot by Tom Phillips to return to work on a "light duties basis" – more than 10 months after the fatal shootout.
The officer was the first to reach Phillips on the morning of September 8, 2025, when the fugitive Marokopa father tried to flee police after a burglary in Piopio.
Phillips shot the officer with a "high-powered rifle" at close range, inflicting a glancing blow to the head from one bullet and significant shoulder damage from another.
A second police car arrived at the scene, and officers returned fire. Phillips died at the scene.
In a statement to 1News, Waikato District Commander Scott Gemmell said the injured officer had made "positive progress in his recovery and is continuing rehabilitation".
"We are currently supporting the officer to return to work on a light duties basis as part of our reintegration programme."
Following the shootout, the officer underwent "numerous surgeries" and was discharged two and a half weeks later.
It was believed the car's laminated windscreen may have saved the officer's life by changing the bullets' trajectory.
Phillips went on the run with his children in December 2021, hiding in dense Waikato bush for four years.
He was with one of his children during the shootout, with several firearms on him and around his camp.
On Tuesday, the final report deadline for the public inquiry into the disappearance of Phillips and his children was extended by one month.
Attorney-General Chris Bishop said the extension would allow time to "clarify" a matter.
"For this reason, I intend to extend the Inquiry’s reporting date to allow it to record its views on the matter. I will do so, under the Inquiries Act, by amending the reporting date in the Inquiry’s terms of reference via Gazette notice," he said.
Bishop said the inquiry "provided a thorough and exacting report on the nature and extent of government agencies’ involvement with Mr Phillips and the children, from before their disappearance through to when they were found".
"The Inquiry has carefully considered suppression orders and the welfare of the children in its reporting. This aligns with the terms of reference’s first principle, which ensures the children’s welfare is not further threatened."
Bishop said would present the final report to Parliament as soon as practicable. He will also consider whether some information needed to be redacted to avoid impacting the administration of justice.
In May, police completed an investigation into possible accomplices of Phillips, but no charges were laid.
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