The mother of an aristocratic family who disappeared with her rapist boyfriend gave birth in the back of their car, it has been revealed.
Constance Marten, 35, and Mark Gordon, 48, disappeared two weeks ago after apparently hiding their pregnancy for five months.
Last week it emerged that British citizen Gordon was a rapist and had been deported after serving his sentence for raping and beating a woman in her twenties in Florida when he was 14.
He and Constance Marten, 35, have been ‘off the grid’ with their child since their car broke down and caught fire on the M61 in Bolton earlier this month.
She has access to a multi-million pound trust fund and police say she appears to have a lot of cash on her person, allowing her to avoid making digital payments that could be tracked.
Police sources said The telegraph that emergency services personnel called to the car fire spotted placenta in the back seat.
Greater Manchester Police were called at 6.33pm by motorists who said they saw the car come to a stop on the hard shoulder.
When rescuers arrived they found the front engine running but inspected the front and rear of the vehicle to make sure no one was inside.
The source said that’s when the crews spotted a placenta and other signs of labor in the back seat. The baby is believed to have been born in the car a day or two early.
The car was purchased for cash shortly before being found. Detectives do not believe the couple set the car on fire, but rather it caught fire after suffering a mechanical failure.
Ms Marten and Gordon are said to have lost many of their personal belongings which they had packed for their trip to the fire.
The discovery of the placenta means they went out of their way to hide the birth and avoid receiving essential medical treatment, a move that could have revealed their whereabouts.
Gordon, who moved to America with his family in 1989, was jailed for 20 years before being returned to the UK in 2010 where he should have been registered as a sex offender.
Court documents also suggest he fled for six weeks before his arrest.
Earlier this week, the Metropolitan Police, who are currently leading the investigation, called on the public to report any sightings of the couple amid growing concern for the wellbeing of mother and baby.
Detectives are particularly keen to speak to any hotel, bed and breakfast or Airbnb owners who may have met the couple who likely insisted on paying cash.
Although the couple are believed to have become increasingly isolated in recent years, police have not ruled out the possibility that they may be receiving help to evade detection from friends.
The pair met in 2016, prompting Ms Marten to drop out of drama school and cut ties with her family.
However, her father, Napier Marten, has urged his daughter to contact the police so that she and her baby, whose gender is not known, can receive medical attention.
In an emotional plea, he said that although he was estranged from his “beloved daughter”, he was “deeply worried” for her and “would do whatever is necessary for you to come back to us safely”.
Mary Anna Marten, the paternal grandmother of Ms Marten and her brothers, Maximilian, 34, and Tobias, 31, was the late Queen Mother’s goddaughter. Their great-grandfather, Captain Napier Sturt, was the third and last Baron Alington.
Their mother, Virginie De Selliers, 63, is a psychotherapist. Mr Marten was a former Queen Elizabeth page and heir to the £115million family fortune.
Contact our press team by emailing us at [email protected].
For more stories like this, check out our news page.
Comments are closed.