January 30th 2024.
Video footage presented to jurors on Tuesday showed a dark-haired child dressed in a babygrow, who was later identified as Constance Marten's newborn daughter. Marten, along with her boyfriend, Mark Gordon, is on trial for the alleged killing of the infant due to lack of proper care while they were on the run. This is the first time that the public has seen a picture of the baby.
According to the charges, the couple, both aged 36 and 49 respectively, are accused of the manslaughter of baby Victoria. It is alleged that the child died while Marten and Gordon were traveling across the country in an attempt to keep her with them. This was described as a "selfish" decision, as their four older children had already been taken into care. Despite coming from a wealthy family, with Marten's father being a page to the late Queen, and having access to money and bank cards, the couple chose to spend hundreds on taxis instead of providing warmth and safety for the infant.
The tragic incident unfolded in February last year, when Marten and Gordon were arrested in East Sussex. Baby Victoria's body was found in a Lidl supermarket bag, covered in rubbish, inside a disused shed. CCTV footage from earlier showed the couple with a bulge under Marten's coat, presumably where the baby was bundled up and covered with a blanket or towel. In another clip, Marten can be seen unzipping her jacket to reveal the baby.
The jury also watched footage of Gordon purchasing a buggy from Argos while Marten sat at a table in a German doner kebab shop. When Gordon returned, Marten put the baby down, wrapped in a red scarf. The prosecutor, Joel Smith, pointed out that the baby's arms were seen moving in the footage, suggesting that she was alive and moving at the time.
A cab driver, Colette Franklin, who had taken the couple from Harwich to Colchester, described how Gordon became nervous and "slid down his seat" when they saw a police car approaching. When they arrived at East Ham, Gordon handed the baby to Marten, who was standing near the door. The footage showed the baby's fingers moving and curling, indicating that she was alive at the time.
The court was told that Marten and Gordon had gone to Whitechapel, where Gordon bought a tent from Argos before heading to Newhaven in East Sussex. On January 12, Marten was seen at a Texaco garage in East Sussex. However, the trail went cold until February 20 when they were spotted near a golf course club house. By then, Gordon was using a branch as a makeshift walking stick and the couple was rummaging through bins. They were finally arrested on February 27 in the outskirts of Brighton.
Paul Rogers, a dog walker, testified that he had seen the couple near a golf course in Brighton. He described them as looking disheveled and possibly homeless. However, he did not recall seeing or hearing a baby. Another witness, Tim Morris, saw the couple on Coldean Lane and noticed that Marten was wearing a big coat, with something underneath it. He suspected that there was a child under the coat and alerted his partner. However, he could not confirm if there was a baby in the buggy.
The defendants, who are both homeless, deny the charges of manslaughter by gross negligence, perverting the course of justice, concealing the birth of a child, child cruelty, and causing or allowing the death of a child. Gordon's defense barrister asked for a short break during the court proceedings, as his client was finding it stressful. Marten, who was later captured on camera buying a dummy in Boots, has not been attending court for her trial.
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