Two hundred police search for newborn baby after missing couple Constance Marten and Mark Gordon arrested
The missing aristocrat, her partner, and their newborn baby have been missing since their car broke down near a motorway in early January.
Tuesday 28 February 2023 16:38, UK
More than 200 officers are searching for a newborn baby after a missing mother and her partner were found and arrested.
Police said Constance Marten and Mark Gordon - a convicted sex offender - were spotted in Brighton by a member of the public about 9.30pm on Monday.
They were arrested minutes later on suspicion of child neglect and are now in custody - but their baby is still missing.
"Whilst we hold hope that baby is still alive, we agree that the risk to the baby is extremely high," police said.
The couple had been missing since early January and were spotted in various locations including Liverpool, Essex and Sussex.
Officers are now searching sheds and greenhouses at the Roedale Valley Allotments in Brighton, as well as woodland in nearby Golf Drive.
They have so far found no sign of the child or where the couple have been staying, and the search may soon be extended further along the South Downs.
Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford told Sky News: "We are currently looking into all available areas that the baby could be in the open land.
"That will include the search of outbuildings and anywhere the baby could have been left by the couple to seek shelter away from the climate and extreme temperatures.
"The search will include every facility in this location, going out into the open land to try and locate the baby."
DSI Basford said no further information on where the baby may be has been gained from questioning the couple.
"I have always remained hopeful that the child is alive, and the investigation we have led is all about the safe recovery and location of the baby," he added.
Police also said it was unlikely - but that they hadn't ruled out the possibility - that the child could have been handed to someone else.
Marten's father, Napier Marten, speaking to The Independent, said it was "an immense relief" to know the couple have been found, but it would have been "far better if they had handed themselves in earlier".
He added that it was "very alarming news her baby has yet to be found".
Read more:
From Liverpool to Brighton - mapping the sightings
CCTV breakthrough suggests couple 'sleeping in tent'
Marten, 35, and Gordon, 48, were first reported missing after their car broke down on the M61, near Bolton, on 5 January.
Over the following days, there were sightings in a number of places including Liverpool, Essex, south London and more recently in Newhaven in East Sussex.
Authorities previously believed the couple had been sleeping in a blue tent and had avoided being traced by moving around frequently and keeping their faces covered from CCTV.
Marten, who is from a wealthy family, is said to have lived an isolated life with Gordon since they met in 2016.