When Constance Marten fell pregnant for the fifth time with Mark Gordon, they were determined to keep the baby.
Over the previous four years, a family court had removed their first four children from their care – a decision the parents tried to claim was a miscarriage of justice driven by a “corrupt” social services system.
So they hatched a plan to carefully conceal her pregnancy from the world and delivered baby Victoria in secret in a holiday cottage in Northumberland on Christmas Eve 2022.
Moving on after less than a week, they were driving along the M61 when their car caught fire. Fleeing the scene before police arrived, officers found a placenta wrapped in a towel in the vehicle which sparked a frantic nationwide manhunt for the couple and their baby.
From there they moved rapidly – paying in cash to zigzag across the country by taxi – while keeping the baby hidden under Marten’s coat.
As the high-profile manhunt intensified, so did their desperation, and when members of the public started recognising them they bought a cheap tent from Argos and headed to the South Downs to lay low away from “prying eyes”.
Victoria would tragically die inside Marten’s jacket as they sheltered in wintry conditions. But instead of handing themselves in, they stayed off-grid for weeks, carrying the tiny baby’s body in a Lidl carrier bag.
Starving and dishevelled, they were finally arrested on 27 February 2023 after 53 days on the run when a member of the public spotted them buying food. Victoria’s body was found two days later stashed in a rubbish-filled Lidl carrier bag in a disused shed.
Both defendants have now been found guilty of manslaughter following a retrial at London’s Old Bailey.
Here is how the manhunt unfolded:
Christmas Eve 2022 – Northumberland
Marten delivered baby Victoria unaided in a holiday cottage in Northumberland, where she and Gordon – armed with a large amount of cash – spent Christmas.
The mother-of-five said she did not need help delivering her fifth child following a problem-free pregnancy, relying on a TENS machine to help her manage contractions.
At then of their six-night stay, the owners found the cottage in disarray with candle wax and cat litter on the floors and carpets and the bathroom littered with urine stains, the court heard.
Thursday, 5 January – M61 near Bolton
Heading south, Marten and Gordon’s Peugeot 206 caught fire at the side of the M61 near Bolton. They escaped unhurt with baby Victoria, but fled the scene before police arrived at around 6.30pm.
Inside the burnt-out car, officers found a placenta wrapped in a towel, Marten’s passport, £2,000 in cash and a stash of burner phones. They launched a high-risk missing persons investigation.
Van driver Ken Hudson, one the only witnesses to have seen baby Victoria, said he touched the infant’s head and said “God bless” after he pulled over to help the family.
Friday, 6 January – Liverpool
To avoid the police, the pair walked along a wooded area beside the motorway and up a bank to cross the Anchor Lane bridge, before walking to a taxi rank in Bolton with Victoria hidden underneath Marten’s coat.
They travelled by taxi for more than 30 miles to Liverpool – but did not stay long – before another taxi picked them up near Liverpool University Hospital and drove them 270 miles to the port of Harwich in Essex.
They paid £300 or £400 in cash for the journey, the prosecution said, before checking in to a Premier Inn in Harwich at around 3am under the surname “Thomas”. Later that day they moved to second hotel – the Fryatt Hotel, also paying in cash.
Saturday, 7 January – Harwich and Colchester sightings
The parents and infant were seen by a member of the public in Harwich at about 9am. Marten was captured on CCTV wearing black leggings and wrapped in a red scarf near the port.
Officers also received a number of sightings of the family in Colchester, Essex, later that day – but they continued moving at pace and travelled another 200 miles by taxi to East Ham in London.
Saturday, 7 January – East London
The parents were captured on CCTV arriving in East Ham shortly before midday – including footage of Marten repositioning dark-haired baby Victoria underneath her coat.
The mother then went to a German kebab shop, where she appeared to feed the infant while Gordon went to Argos and purchased a buggy.
They then travelled by taxi to Whitechapel, where Gordon bought a blue two-man tent, two sleeping bags and two pillows, from another branch of Argos at 6.19pm.
They ate dinner that night at a restaurant in Brick Lane, but dumped the buggy they had just bought before travelling by taxi to Haringey shortly before midnight.
Sunday, 8 January – Haringey to Newhaven
Rather than stay the night, they immediately caught another cab and travelled to Newhaven in East Sussex.
They paid the driver, Hasan Guzel, £475 in cash for the journey after he collected them from an alleyway in Haringey. In a statement read to the court, he said Marten got in first before Gordon appeared with their bags.
He dropped them off near Newhaven Town Station just before 5am, adding: “When I dropped them off it was cold, windy and dark. I was concerned as to what they were going to do next.”
They were later seen sheltering under an overpass at around 6am, before walking along Cantercrow Hill and into the fields beyond before they pitched a tent on the South Downs.
Monday 9 January – Newhaven: Marten awoke to find Victoria dead in the tent
Marten insisted Victoria had been “happy and content” but said she fell asleep sitting up, cross-legged with her baby daughter zipped inside her jacket. When she awoke she was slumped over with her head on the floor and the infant was lifeless inside her coat.
“I took her out of my jacket. I believe I woke Mark up and said ‘babe there’s something wrong’,” she told the court.
“But he didn’t believe me so he tried to resuscitate her but she wasn’t alive. He just didn’t accept that she wasn’t alive. He was trying to see if she would breathe.”
12 January – Purchased a bottle of petrol from a Texaco garage before moving to Brighton
The mother claimed they were in a state of “disbelief, shock” and “intense grief” following the death of their baby, whose body she wrapped in a scarf and placed in a Lidl bag for life.
She was seen purchasing a bottle of petrol from a Texaco station in Newhaven – telling the court she was going to cremate the infant but could not go through with it – before the couple caught a bus to Brighton with the lifeless infant in the shopping bag.
Thursday, 19 January – Father issues heartfelt appeal through The Independent
Marten’s father, Napier Marten, issued an appeal through The Independent for his daughter to get in touch.
“I want you to understand that you are much much loved whatever the circumstances,” he pleaded. “We are deeply concerned for your and your baby’s welfare.”
He said he was ready to help despite their estrangement, adding: “The past eight years have been beyond painful for all the family as well as your friends, as they must have been for you. And to see you so vulnerable again is testing in the extreme.”
Tuesday, 31 January – £10,000 reward offered
A £10,000 reward is offered by the Metropolitan Police for information leading to the family being found safe.
Tuesday, 7 February – Virginie de Selliers open letter
Marten’s mother Virginie de Selliers published an open letter to her daughter, pledging to support her and telling her “you are not alone”.
She vowed to help her daughter build a new life and enjoy motherhood, adding: “You have made choices in your personal adult life which have proven to be challenging, however I respect them, I know that you want to keep your precious new-born child at all costs.
“With all that you have gone through this baby cannot be removed from you but instead needs looking after in a kind and warm environment.”
20 February – Scavenging through bins at Brighton golf course
The couple were captured on security cameras rummaging through bins at Hollingbury Golf Course in Brighton as they scavenged for food. The pair were carrying a red Lidl bag for life.
Tuesday, 21 February – Police issue appeal from midwife
The Metropolitan Police make the latest in a number of public appeals to find the family, including a plea from midwife Shereen Nimmo for Marten to get her baby medical attention.
Monday, 27 February – Couple arrested in Brighton, sparking search for baby
The couple were arrested by officers from Sussex Police in Stanmer Villas, Brighton, after a member of the public spotted them buying food and withdrawing cash from a convenience store.
By this time, Gordon was walking with a limp with a plastic bag around his foot – while Marten had wadding stuffed inside her jacket for warmth.
They were held on suspicion of child neglect, while officers launched a massive search operation for the missing newborn. More than 200 officers scoured over 96 square miles near where they were found, including allotments and woodland, using a helicopter, sniffer dogs, thermal imaging cameras and drones.
Wednesday, 1 March – Infant’s body found in allotment shed
Police discovered baby Victoria’s remains in a plastic bag filled with rubbish in a disused shed at an overgrown Brighton allotment, near where the parents were arrested.
Police footage showed officers rifling through a tatty red Lidl carrier bag, pulling out nappies and an old Budweiser beer can before reaching into the bottom of the bag where the child’s body was discovered under a layer of soil and leaves.
Thursday, 2 March – Police charge couple with gross negligence manslaughter
The couple was charged with gross negligence manslaughter, concealing a birth and perverting the course of justice.
Barry Hughes, chief crown prosecutor for CPS London North, said: “These charges arise from their arrest on Monday as a result of a lengthy police investigation to establish their whereabouts and that of their baby.”
Monday, 10 July – Two further charges announced
The defendants were told they were facing further charges of child cruelty and causing or allowing the death of a child. It was alleged they caused the baby’s death by their own “unlawful act” or failed to “take such steps as could reasonably have been expected” to protect the baby.
Thursday, 26 October – Couple plead not guilty
In a court hearing at the Old Bailey they denied all the charges. Marten, of no fixed address, appeared wearing a white blouse. Asked how she pleaded to the charge of manslaughter by gross negligence, she replied: “Definitely not guilty.”
A dock officer separated her from Gordon, who was wearing a grey prison issue tracksuit and green hat. He replied in a loud voice “not guilty” to each charge.
Thursday, 25 January 2024 – First trial opens at Old Bailey
Opening the case at London’s Old Bailey, prosecutor Tom Little KC claimed the parents “reckless, utterly selfish and callous” conduct – carried out to avoid the child being taken into care like her four siblings – led to the “entirely avoidable” death of baby Victoria.
Marten, who claimed the child died in a tragic accident after she fell asleep with her in her jacket, said she had neglected herself in their desperation to keep the Victoria, telling the jury: “I loved her so much I wasn’t thinking about myself.”
Wednesday 19 June 2024 – Jury discharged
The jury was discharged after failing to reach verdicts on the charges over the death of baby Victoria.
Monday 10 March 2025 – Retrial opens at Old Bailey
The couple stood trial for a second time facing charges of gross negligence manslaughter and causing or allowing the death of baby Victoria.
Both denied the charges, but prosecutor Tom Little KC insisted they “recklessly” went on the run despite the obvious risk of hypothermia for the infant.
Jurors were told they had already been convicted of concealing the birth of the child and perverting the course of justice in a previous trial, but were not told of the child cruelty conviction.
Monday 14 July 2025 – Marten and Gordon found guilty of manslaughter
Marten and Gordon were found guilty of killing their newborn baby following the trial at the Old Bailey.
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