Constance Marten: New pictures released in search for aristocrat missing with rapist partner and newborn baby
The police have released new pictures of missing aristocrat Constance Marten who has been missing for almost three weeks with her newborn baby and rapist boyfriend.
The Metropolitan Police believe the family has been sleeping outside in a tent in sub zero temperatures after purchasing a tent in an Argos in Whitechapel, east London.
A spokesperson said: “Mark went in alone and bought two big bags full of items, paying in cash, including a blue two-man tent, two sleeping bags and two pillows. He left the store at 6:40pm on 7 January.
“They then spent slightly more than three hours walking around the Whitechapel Road area. They tried to flag down three black cabs, but were refused.
“They then left the area on foot and were last seen walking along Brick Lane, towards Bethnal Green Road, at 22:01hrs on Saturday, 7 January. Mark is often seen walking alone ahead of Constance and the baby.”
Officers said they then left the area on foot and were seen walking along Brick Lane towards Bethnal Green Road at 10.01pm on 7 January. The police said Mark is often seen walking ahead of Constance and the baby.
This is the last official sighting of the family, the Met said.
Birmingham-born Mark Gordon, the partner of Ms Marten and who is 13 years her senior, was jailed in the late 1980s in Florida, US, after raping and assaulting a woman in her early 20s when he was 14. After serving a 20-year sentence he was deported back to the UK in 2010.
The couple is understood to have lived an isolated life since meeting in 2016, with Ms Marten cutting off ties with family and friends.
Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford, who is leading the investigation, said: “We are extremely concerned that a newborn baby – less than a week old at the time on 7 January – has been exposed to sub-freezing cold temperatures if Mark and Constance have been camping out somewhere as our evidence suggests.
“No child, especially a tiny, newborn baby, should be forced to endure such dangerous, potentially life-threatening, conditions.
“This is why it is absolutely vital that anyone with information about their whereabouts contacts us as a matter of urgency – whether it is with a recent or older sighting. Every piece of information is crucial to enabling us to find the baby and ensure it is okay.
“My officers will continue working tirelessly behind the scenes to piece together the family’s movements and current whereabouts. It could be that they are trying to blend in with homeless communities, either here in London or further afield, or they could be camping in more rural or wooded areas.
“They could be absolutely anywhere in the country. Please keep your eyes peeled, especially while you are out and about in waste ground or beauty spots, or while you’re walking the dog, and report any information, no matter how insignificant you think it is, to us.”
Metropolitan Police officers are desperately trying to find the mother, her baby and Mark Gordon after their car burst into flames on the M61 in Bolton, Greater Manchester, on 5 January.
The pair were dropped off at Whitechapel Road in east London
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The couple’s last confirmed sighting is 7 January
The family was spotted in an East London street on 7 January
