Constance Marten news – live: Missing aristocrat’s rapist partner ‘brandished kitchen knife in four-hour attack’
The partner of missing aristocrat Constance Marten raped one of his neighbours armed with a pair of garden shears during a hostage situation when he was a teenager.
Mark Gordon, who is on the run in the UK with Ms Marten and their newborn baby, carried out the attack in Florida in 1989, aged 14, and was later jailed for 20 years.
The 48-year-old was born in Birmingham, West Midlands, but he, his mother and his half-siblings moved to the US when he was still a child in 1989.
He committed the offence in April of that year. Gordon armed himself with garden shears and a kitchen knife, then attacked his neighbour in a four-and-a-half-hour ordeal which saw him take her hostage and sexually assault her, the Daily Mail reports.
Two young children were sleeping in the room next door at the time of the attack, the paper said.
Key Points
Missing aristocrat’s partner raped neighbour armed with ‘garden shears’
‘He’s a good boy’: Mark Gordon’s mother speaks out
Friend warned Constance Marten against love trap
Map plots sightings of missing couple
‘We want you and your baby protected’: Father pleads with missing daughter
Gordon was armed with garden shears when carried out rape - report
08:11 , Matt Mathers
The boyfriend of missing aristocrat Constance Marten raped one of his neighbours armed with a pair of garden shears during a hostage situation when he was a teenager.
Mark Gordon, who is on the run in the UK with Ms Marten and their newborn baby, carried out the attack in Florida in 1989, aged 14, and was later jailed for 20 years.
The 48-year-old was born in Birmingham, West Midlands, but he, his mother and his half-siblings moved to the US when he was still a child in 1989.
He committed the offence in April of that year. Gordon armed himself with garden shears and a kitchen knife, then attacked his neighbour in a four-and-a-half-hour ordeal which saw him take her hostage and sexually assault her, the Daily Mail reports.
Two young children were sleeping in the room next door at the time of the attack, the paper said.
Here’s how Constance Marten and Mark Gordon are evading detection
14:37 , Matt Mathers
I have spent decades tracking down wanted people – even those who had evaded the police for years, writes investigative reporter Mark Williams-Thomas.
Read his full article here:
ICYMI: Constance Marten - the ‘It’ girls aristocrat links
14:30 , Matt Mathers
Andy Gregory walks through the roots of Constance Marten, the aristocrat’s daughter missing with her child:
Constance Marten, 35, is the granddaughter of Mary Anna Marten, a British Museum trustee whose godmother was the late Queen Mother, and who used to own the Crichel estate in Dorset.
Her grandparents were Toby Marten, a Lieutenant Commander in the Royal Navy, and his wife Mary Anna, who had close links to the royal family, attending the Brownies pack at Buckingham Palace alongside Princess Margaret in her youth.
A notable archaeologist, Ms Marten was awarded an OBE in 1980 and appointed High Sheriff of Dorset nine years later. She was also made a trustee of the British Museum and travelled widely in aid of her profession, making frequent trips to Iran and 30 visits to Russia.
The late couple and their family lived at the vast Crichel House – used as the backdrop for several period dramas, including Emma starring Gwyneth Paltrow – the ownership of which in the wake of the Second World War became the centre of a notorious political scandal.
They were survived by five daughters and one son, Napier Marten, who was a Page to Queen Elizabeth II. In 1996 he took a voyage of spiritual discovery in Australia, later returning to work as a tree surgeon near Crichel House.
ICYMI: Gordon broke into victim’s house through her bathroom window
14:04 , Matt Mathers
Mark Gordon broke into his victim’s house through her bathroom window, it has emerged.
He then found a pair of her stockings and used them as a face mask before carrying out his attack.
Once he encountered the woman he ordered her into the bedroom while still armed.
He then ordered her to undress before sexually assaulting and raping her, the Daily Mail reports.
ICYMI: Friend of Constance Marten ‘warned’ her about falling in love with dangerous men
13:24 , Matt Mathers
A friend of Constance Marten has claimed she previously warned the missing mother about the type of men she “falls in love with” but that she “doesn’t listen to anyone”.
Noisette Tahoun, who worked at the same film production company as Ms Marten in Cairo, Egypt, in 2010, said she was “not shocked” when she found out that the 35-year-old had been reported missing.
Speaking to The Independent, Ms Tahoun said she had told the heiress to “take care of the people she gets close to”.
My colleague Thomas Kinglsey reports:
Friend of Constance Marten ‘warned’ her about falling in love with dangerous men
Who is Napier Marten? Father who made emotional appeal for daughter missing with baby
12:58 , Matt Mathers
The aristocratic Marten family has dominated headlines in recent weeks after 35-year-old Constance Marten, her newborn baby and partner, a convicted rapist, became the subject of a “high risk” missing person investigation.
Napier Marten urged his daughter Constance to take herself and the child to safety as soon as possible.
But who is Napier? My colleague Thomas Kinglsey reports:
Who is Napier Marten? Father who made emotional appeal for daughter missing with baby
Listen: Come home darling, father urges Constance Marten
12:26 , Matt Mathers
The estranged father of Constance Marten has made an emotional plea to his daughter, asking her to return home.
Napier Marten urged the runaway aristocrat - who has been missing with partner Mark Gordon and their newborn since 5 January - to turn herself into the police so she and her baby “can be protected”.
“I also wish you to understand you are much, much loved, whatever the circumstances,” Mr Marten said.
“To see you so vulnerable again is testing in the extreme.”
You can listen to the full audio here:
Listen: Father of runaway aristocrat makes emotional plea to missing daughter
Constance Marten: The runaway heiress, her convicted rapist partner and the painful rift at the heart of British aristocracy
11:40 , Matt Mathers
Her upbringing had all the trappings of high society, so how did Constance Marten come to be on the run for weeks on end with a sex offender 13 years her senior? Tom Ough reports
The runaway heiress, her rapist partner and the aristocratic family rift
Aristocrat’s boyfriend convicted of six charges
10:45 , Matt Mathers
After carrying out his attack in Flordia, Mark Gordon was found guilty of six charges in total.
They include one count of armed kidnapping, four separate counts of armed sexual battery and one count of burglary with a deadly weapon.
He was convicted on all charges.
ICYMI: Key points
10:15 , Matt Mathers
Here are the key points from the case of Constance Marten and her partner Mark Gordon
At 18.33hrs on Thursday, 5 January, officers were called to a car on fire on the hard-shoulder of the M61, near junction four (Farnworth, Bolton). However, the occupants were not at the scene.
It is believed most of their belongings were destroyed in the car fire.
Enquiries revealed that Constance and Mark were the occupants of the car and that Constance had very recently given birth, possibly one or two days before, and had not been assessed by medical professionals.
A missing persons investigation was launched by Greater Manchester Police, who established that the family left the vehicle and the motorway safely – walking to the Anchor Lane bridge which links the Highfield and Little Hulton areas.
Officers believe they then travelled to Liverpool and then onwards to Harwich via a taxi at about 03.30hrs on Friday, 6 January.
Mark, Constance and a baby were seen by a member of the public in Harwich at about 9am on Saturday, 7 January. Officers also received a number of confirmed sightings of the family in Colchester on Friday, 6 January and Saturday, 7 January.
Subsequently, the investigation was handed over to Essex Police on Monday, 9 January.
Essex Police carried out a number of enquiries and reviewed hours of CCTV and were able to place the couple near East Ham Station between 10:30hrs and 12:30hrs on Saturday, 7 January.
Gordon broke into victim’s house through her bathroom window
09:42 , Matt Mathers
Mark Gordon broke into his victim’s house through her bathroom window, it has emerged.
He then found a pair of her stockings and used them as a face mask before carrying out his attack.
Once he encountered the woman he ordered her into the bedroom while still armed.
He then ordered her to undress before sexually assaulting and raping her, the Daily Mail reports.
Friend of Constance Marten ‘warned’ her about falling in love with dangerous men
09:11 , Matt Mathers
A friend of Constance Marten has claimed she previously warned the missing mother about the type of men she “falls in love with” but that she “doesn’t listen to anyone”.
Noisette Tahoun, who worked at the same film production company as Ms Marten in Cairo, Egypt, in 2010, said she was “not shocked” when she found out that the 35-year-old had been reported missing.
Speaking to The Independent, Ms Tahoun said she had told the heiress to “take care of the people she gets close to”.
My colleague Thomas Kingsley reports:
Friend of Constance Marten ‘warned’ her about falling in love with dangerous men
In depth: The runaway heiress and the rift at the heart of British democracy
07:00 , Liam James
Tom Ough investigates the disappearance causing a stir in high places: They abandoned their burning car on the hard shoulder of the M61 and fled – an aristocrat, a sex offender, and their baby, born just one or two days before. From the inferno near Bolton, thought to have destroyed all their belongings, they travelled first to Liverpool, then to Harwich in Essex, to Colchester and on to East Ham station in east London, over the course of two days.
That blurry CCTV footage from 7 January is the last confirmed sighting of 35-year-old Constance Marten, the heiress’s face wrapped in a red scarf, her baby swaddled inside her coat. Alongside her is 48-year-old convicted rapist Mark Gordon, his head covered and bowed away from the camera. Police, concerned for the health of the baby, have been searching for the couple, but they are thought to have with them a large amount of cash, allowing them to stay off the grid.
So just how did Marten, whose father was a page to Elizabeth II, go from gracing the pages of society bible Tatler to being on the run with a man who, after burgling and raping a woman as a teenager, spent 20 years imprisoned in Florida before being deported to Britain?
The runaway heiress, her rapist partner and the aristocratic family rift
Friend of Constance Marten ‘warned’ her about falling in love with dangerous men
06:00 , Liam James
A friend of Constance Marten has claimed she previously warned the missing mother about the type of men she “falls in love with” but that she “doesn’t listen to anyone” (Thomas Kingsley writes).
Noisette Tahoun, who worked at the same film production company as Ms Marten in Cairo, Egypt, in 2010, said she was “not shocked” when she found out that the 35-year-old had been reported missing.
Speaking to The Independent, Ms Tahoun said: “I was not shocked when I heard she was missing. I know when she falls in love she goes anywhere with the person she loves.
“I’ve given her advice about it ... I’ve warned her to take care of the people she gets close to.”
Friend of Constance Marten ‘warned’ her about falling in love with dangerous men
Constance Marten: Map plots sightings of missing couple
05:00 , Liam James
The Independent has plotted a map with the locations where Constance Marten and Mark Gordon have been seen since police reported them missing.
The last known sighting of the couple was on 7 January in East Ham, London, two days after they abandoned their burnt-out car on the side of the M61 near Bolton, more than 200 miles away.
Search for Constance Marten involves 200 police officers
04:00 , Liam James
More than 200 police officers are involved in the search for Constance Marten, her partner Mark Gordon and their newborn child.
Metropolitan Police said officers had scoured more than 200 hours of CCTV footage so far.
The missing couple appear to know how to evade authorities, making the search more difficult, police said.
It recently emerged that Mr Gordon is a convicted rapist who had been jailed in the US.
The last confirmed sighting of the pair was on 7 January, two days after their disappearance, on CCTV at London’s East Ham station.
Constance Marten and partner have cash to live on, say police
03:00 , Liam James
Constance Marten and Mark Gordon have a substantial amount of cash, allowing them to live off-grid, police have said.
The aristocrat’s daughter, the convicted rapist and their baby had no luggage with them after most of their belongings were destroyed in a car fire, and are using cash to pay for taxis and places to stay.
The couple are understood to have lived an isolated life since meeting in 2016, with then-drama student Ms Marten cutting off ties with family and friends.
Last September, they began moving around the country, renting AirBnBs for brief periods before going missing after abandoning their car on 5 January.
Couple know how to avoid authorities, say police
02:00 , Liam James
Police investigating the disappearance of Constance Marten, Mark Gordon and their newborn baby said the couple appears to know how to evade authorities, making the search harder.
Officers believe they could be anywhere in the UK and are appealing to the public to come forward with any information that may help find them.
Investigators said it is unusual for hotels to accept cash payments and appealed to staff at hotels or hostels where the couple may stay to come forward.
Constance Marten: The ‘It’ girls aristocrat links
01:00 , Liam James
Andy Gregory walks through the roots of Constance Marten, the aristocrat’s daughter missing with her child:
Constance Marten, 35, is the granddaughter of Mary Anna Marten, a British Museum trustee whose godmother was the late Queen Mother, and who used to own the Crichel estate in Dorset.
Her grandparents were Toby Marten, a Lieutenant Commander in the Royal Navy, and his wife Mary Anna, who had close links to the royal family, attending the Brownies pack at Buckingham Palace alongside Princess Margaret in her youth.
A notable archaeologist, Ms Marten was awarded an OBE in 1980 and appointed High Sheriff of Dorset nine years later. She was also made a trustee of the British Museum and travelled widely in aid of her profession, making frequent trips to Iran and 30 visits to Russia.
The late couple and their family lived at the vast Crichel House – used as the backdrop for several period dramas, including Emma starring Gwyneth Paltrow – the ownership of which in the wake of the Second World War became the centre of a notorious political scandal.
They were survived by five daughters and one son, Napier Marten, who was a Page to Queen Elizabeth II. In 1996 he took a voyage of spiritual discovery in Australia, later returning to work as a tree surgeon near Crichel House.
Mark Gordon’s mother speaks out: ‘He is a good boy'
00:00 , Liam James
Mark Gordon’s mother Sylvia said she is “very concerned” for the safety of her son and his partner.
She told the Daily Mail: “I am very concerned. I love my son. He is a good boy so I don’t know what this is all about.”
Mr Gordon has been missing with partner Constance Marten and their newbord child since 5 January.
It recently emerged that Mr Gordon is a convicted rapist who spent 20 years in jail in the US.
Who is Napier Marten? Aristocrat father of missing woman
Thursday 19 January 2023 23:00 , Liam James
Napier Marten today publicly appealed for his missing daughter Constance to go to the police.
In a voice message shared with The Independent he said: “Darling Constance, even though we remain estranged at the moment, I stand by, as I have always done and as the family has always done, to do whatever is necessary for your safe return to us.”
Mr Marten, a film and music producer, has roots in Britain’s upper classes. He is the son of Mary Anna Marten, a British Museum trustee whose godmother was the late Queen Mother, and who used to own the Crichel estate in Dorset.
His father, Toby Marten, a lieutenant commander in the Royal Navy, had close links to the royal family, attending the Brownies pack at Buckingham Palace alongside Princess Margaret in her youth.
When Constance was nine, Mr Napier had what was described as an “awakening”. He later told how a voice in his head had told him to discard the £115m family fortune, shave his head and fly to Australia. He later lived in a lorry and trained in head massage, giving the family’s noted Crichel Estate to his son to sell.
Who are Constance Marten and Mark Gordon: Everything we know about couple missing with newborn
Thursday 19 January 2023 21:30 , Liam James
Thomas Kingsley goes over what we know so far about the missing couple:
Who are Constance Marten and Mark Gordon: Everything we know about missing couple
ICYMI: Constance Marten was ‘promising actress’ and featured in Tatler magazine
Thursday 19 January 2023 20:30 , Matt Mathers
Constance Marten was a “talented actress”, according to friends.
The mother and baby belong to an aristocratic household that once possessed a sprawling country estate with links to the royal family, as revealed by The Independent.
As concern for the family grows, worried friends have spoken out about the former Tatler magazine babe of the month who enrolled at East 15 drama school in Essex before dropping out in 2016. Speaking to The Sunday Times, a former friend revealed that she had been a promising actress in her youth.
Friend of Constance Marten ‘warned’ her about falling in love with dangerous men
Thursday 19 January 2023 19:30 , Liam James
A friend of Constance Marten has claimed she previously warned the missing mother about the type of men she “falls in love with” but that she “doesn’t listen to anyone”.
Noisette Tahoun, who worked at the same film production company as Ms Marten in Cairo, Egypt, in 2010, said she was “not shocked” when she found out that the 35-year-old had been reported missing.
Speaking to The Independent, Ms Tahoun said: “I was not shocked when I heard she was missing. I know when she falls in love she goes anywhere with the person she loves.
“I’ve given her advice about it ... I’ve warned her to take care of the people she gets close to.”
Friend of Constance Marten ‘warned’ her about falling in love with dangerous men
Constance Marten: Map plots sightings of missing couple
Thursday 19 January 2023 18:45 , Liam James
The Independent has plotted a map with the locations where Constance Marten and Mark Gordon have been seen since police reported them missing.
The last known sighting of the couple was on 7 January in East Ham, London, two days after they abandoned their burnt-out car on the side of the M61 near Bolton, more than 200 miles away.
Constance Marten’s father appeals to missing daughter
Thursday 19 January 2023 18:00 , Liam James
“I beseech you to find a way to turn yourself and your wee one in to the police as soon as possible so you and he or she can be protected. Only then can a process of healing and recovery begin, however long it may take, however difficult it may be,” Napier Marten had these word for his estranged daughter Constance and her newborn child.
In depth: The runaway heiress and the rift at the heart of British democracy
Thursday 19 January 2023 17:30 , Liam James
Tom Ough investigates the disappearance causing a stir in high places: They abandoned their burning car on the hard shoulder of the M61 and fled – an aristocrat, a sex offender, and their baby, born just one or two days before. From the inferno near Bolton, thought to have destroyed all their belongings, they travelled first to Liverpool, then to Harwich in Essex, to Colchester and on to East Ham station in east London, over the course of two days.
That blurry CCTV footage from 7 January is the last confirmed sighting of 35-year-old Constance Marten, the heiress’s face wrapped in a red scarf, her baby swaddled inside her coat. Alongside her is 48-year-old convicted rapist Mark Gordon, his head covered and bowed away from the camera. Police, concerned for the health of the baby, have been searching for the couple, but they are thought to have with them a large amount of cash, allowing them to stay off the grid.
So just how did Marten, whose father was a page to Elizabeth II, go from gracing the pages of society bible Tatler to being on the run with a man who, after burgling and raping a woman as a teenager, spent 20 years imprisoned in Florida before being deported to Britain?
The runaway heiress, her rapist partner and the aristocratic family rift
ICYMI: ‘I’m very concerned’, says Gordon’s mother
Thursday 19 January 2023 16:30 , Matt Mathers
Mark Gordon’s mother Sylvia said she is “very concerned” for the safety of her son and his partner.
She told the Daily Mail: “I am very concerned. I love my son. He is a good boy so I don’t know what this is all about.
“I am worried for all of them. I am thinking, I wonder if someone kidnapped them?”
ICYMI: Key points
Thursday 19 January 2023 15:15 , Matt Mathers
Here are the key points from the case of Constance Marten and her partner Mark Gordon
At 18.33hrs on Thursday, 5 January, officers were called to a car on fire on the hard-shoulder of the M61, near junction four (Farnworth, Bolton). However, the occupants were not at the scene.
It is believed most of their belongings were destroyed in the car fire.
Enquiries revealed that Constance and Mark were the occupants of the car and that Constance had very recently given birth, possibly one or two days before, and had not been assessed by medical professionals.
A missing persons investigation was launched by Greater Manchester Police, who established that the family left the vehicle and the motorway safely – walking to the Anchor Lane bridge which links the Highfield and Little Hulton areas.
Officers believe they then travelled to Liverpool and then onwards to Harwich via a taxi at about 03.30hrs on Friday, 6 January.
Mark, Constance and a baby were seen by a member of the public in Harwich at about 9am on Saturday, 7 January. Officers also received a number of confirmed sightings of the family in Colchester on Friday, 6 January and Saturday, 7 January.
Subsequently, the investigation was handed over to Essex Police on Monday, 9 January.
Essex Police carried out a number of enquiries and reviewed hours of CCTV and were able to place the couple near East Ham Station between 10:30hrs and 12:30hrs on Saturday, 7 January.
Who is Napier Marten? Father who made emotional appeal for daughter missing with baby
Thursday 19 January 2023 14:15 , Matt Mathers
The aristocratic Marten family has dominated headlines in recent weeks after 35-year-old Constance Marten, her newborn baby and partner, a convicted rapist, became the subject of a “high risk” missing person investigation.
Napier Marten urged his daughter Constance to take herself and the child to safety as soon as possible.
My colleague Thomas Kingsley reports:
Who is Napier Marten? Father who made emotional appeal for daughter missing with baby
‘I’m very concerned’
Thursday 19 January 2023 13:46 , Matt Mathers
Mark Gordon’s mother Sylvia said she is “very concerned” for the safety of her son and his partner.
She told the Daily Mail: “I am very concerned. I love my son. He is a good boy so I don’t know what this is all about.
“I am worried for all of them. I am thinking, I wonder if someone kidnapped them?”
What has aristocrat’s father said?
Thursday 19 January 2023 11:56 , Matt Mathers
The aristocrat father of Constance Marten has made an emotional appeal telling her to turn herself in to the police.
In audio shared exclusively with The Independent, Napier Marten said: “Darling Constance even though we remain estranged at the moment, I stand by, as I have always done and as the family has always done, to do whatever is necessary for your safe return to us.
“I want you to understand that you are much much loved whatever the circumstances. We are deeply concerned for your and your baby’s welfare”.
“I beseech you to find a way to turn yourself and your wee one in to the police as soon as possible, so you and he or she can be protected. Only then can a process of healing and recovery begin, however long it may take, however difficult it may be.
“I would like you to understand that the family will do all that is needed for your wellbeing. And I also wish you to understand you are much much loved whatever the circumstances.
“We are deeply concerned for your and your baby’s welfare.”
When did couple meet?
Thursday 19 January 2023 11:09 , Matt Mathers
Ms Marten is said to have met her partner in 2016 and they are understood to have lived an isolated life ever since.
After meeting Gordon, Ms Marten cut off contact with her family and friends.
Last September, they began moving around the country, renting AirBnBs for brief periods.
They have been missing for some two weeks.
‘They could be anywhere in the UK'
Thursday 19 January 2023 10:41 , Matt Mathers
Commenting further on the case, Detective Superintendent Basford described the investigation as “complex”, adding the couple could be “anywhere in the UK”.
He said: “This is a complex investigation with officers from across the Met continuing to work around the clock to find Constance, Mark and their baby.
“There is nothing to suggest that any of them have come to any sort of intentional harm – we just need to ensure they are okay, especially the baby, and do not require any medical assistance for any underlying issues.
“The last confirmed sighting of them was more than a week ago in East Ham – they could now be anywhere in the UK, which is why it is vital that members of the public continue to contact us with any suspected sightings.
The assistance you’ve provided so far has been invaluable. Please don’t forget about Constance, Mark and the baby – if you see them or think you have seen them then please contact us as a matter of urgency.”
What do we know so far? Timeline
Thursday 19 January 2023 09:41 , Matt Mathers
At 18.33hrs on Thursday, 5 January, officers were called to a car on fire on the hard-shoulder of the M61, near junction four (Farnworth, Bolton). However, the occupants were not at the scene.
It is believed most of their belongings were destroyed in the car fire.
Enquiries revealed that Constance and Mark were the occupants of the car and that Constance had very recently given birth, possibly one or two days before, and had not been assessed by medical professionals.
A missing persons investigation was launched by Greater Manchester Police, who established that the family left the vehicle and the motorway safely – walking to the Anchor Lane bridge which links the Highfield and Little Hulton areas.
Officers believe they then travelled to Liverpool and then onwards to Harwich via a taxi at about 03.30hrs on Friday, 6 January.
Mark, Constance and a baby were seen by a member of the public in Harwich at about 9am on Saturday, 7 January. Officers also received a number of confirmed sightings of the family in Colchester on Friday, 6 January and Saturday, 7 January.
Subsequently, the investigation was handed over to Essex Police on Monday, 9 January.
Essex Police carried out a number of enquiries and reviewed hours of CCTV and were able to place the couple near East Ham Station between 10:30hrs and 12:30hrs on Saturday, 7 January.
As this was the last confirmed sighting of the family, the investigation was handed over to the Metropolitan Police Service on Thursday, 12 January.
What are police saying about case?
Thursday 19 January 2023 08:41 , Matt Mathers
The Metropolitan Police is appealing for information about the whereabouts of Ms Marten and her partner Mark Gordon, who were last seen in London more than a week ago.
The force said “officers are growing increasingly concerned” about the welfare of Ms Marten, who recently gave birth to a boy, whose safety is the Met’s “priority”.
Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford, who is leading the investigation, said: “It has now almost been two weeks since Mark and Constance’s car broke down on the M61 near Bolton and they have been on the move all that time with a newborn baby.
“As far as we are aware, neither Constance nor the baby have received medical attention since it was born. Our priority is to ensure the baby, and indeed both Constance and Mark, are safe and well.
“Once again, I appeal directly to you Constance and Mark. Please do the right thing for your baby and get in touch with us so that we know that you are all doing okay.”
Estranged father of Constance Marten makes emotional appeal
Thursday 19 January 2023 07:33 , Jane Dalton
The aristocrat father of Constance Marten has made an emotional appeal telling her to turn herself in to the police.
Napier Marten, a film and music producer, urged his daughter Constance - who is missing with her sex offender partner Mark Gordon - to take herself and the child to safety as soon as possible.
Appealing to his daughter, Mr Marten said: “I want you to understand that you are much much loved whatever the circumstances. We are deeply concerned for your and your baby’s welfare”.
Mr Marten, 63, told The Independent he had known about Gordon’s criminal conviction for some time and had lived with the family “in great concern”.
Read more below:
‘Beyond painful’: Dad of runaway aristocrat pleads with daughter to turn herself in
Couple missing with baby ‘have cash to stay off-grid’
Thursday 19 January 2023 07:15 , Shweta Sharma
A couple missing for 11 days with their newborn have a substantial amount of cash, allowing them to live off-grid, police have said.
Constance Marten, Mark Gordon and their baby have no luggage with them after most of their belongings were destroyed in a car fire, and are using cash to pay for taxis and places to stay.
Ms Marten comes from a wealthy aristocratic family, while Mr Gordon is a sex offender who served 20 years in US jail for rape and battery.
Police are worried for the newborn and say neither Ms Marten nor the baby have had medical attention since the birth.
Investigators said it is unusual for hotels to accept cash payments and appealed to staff at hotels or hostels where the couple may stay to come forward.
Mother missing with partner and newborn ‘spotted 200 miles from where they vanished’
Thursday 19 January 2023 06:30 , Shweta Sharma
A mother who has disappeared with her newborn baby and partner may have been spotted twice at sites more than 200 miles away from where they went missing three days ago, police say.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) believe Constance Marten may have been seen in Essex, firstly near to Harwich Port on Saturday at 9am and then in Colchester around an hour later.
Ms Marten, Mark Gordon and the child have been missing since their vehicle broke down near junction four of the M61, near Bolton, on Thursday evening.
Mother missing with partner and newborn ‘spotted 200 miles from where they vanished’
Man missing with aristocrat’s daughter and their newborn is convicted rapist
Thursday 19 January 2023 06:00 , Liam James
The partner of a woman missing with a newborn baby is a convicted rapist who served 20 years in prison (Thomas Kingsley writes).
Mark Gordon and aristocrat’s daughter Constance Marten went missing with their newborn baby on 5 January, when they left their broken-down car on the M61 near Bolton. Police were alerted to the vehicle when it caught fire, destroying most of their possessions.
The Metropolitan Police has released a fresh appeal in the “high risk” search as officers fear the family could be anywhere in the UK.
Gordon is a registered sex offender who was jailed in the late 1980s in the US, after raping and assaulting a woman in her early twenties when he was 14 years old. He was put behind bars in Florida when he was 16 and served a 20-year sentence before being deported back to the UK in 2010.
The Independent previously revealed that Ms Marten is the granddaughter of Mary Anna Marten, a British Museum trustee whose godmother was the late Queen Mother, and who used to own the Crichel estate in Dorset.
Man missing with aristocrat’s daughter and newborn is convicted rapist
CCTV image released in search for missing couple with newborn baby
Thursday 19 January 2023 05:30 , Shweta Sharma
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Police searching for a missing couple and their newborn baby have released a CCTV image that is believed to be of the mother amid fears for their safety.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) are appealing for Constance Marten to make contact and seek medical assistance.
Ms Marten, Mark Gordon and their child have been missing since their vehicle broke down near junction four of the M61, near Bolton, on Thursday.
CCTV image released in search for missing couple with newborn baby
Constance Marten was ‘promising actress’ and featured in Tatler magazine
Thursday 19 January 2023 05:00 , Liam James
Constance Marten was ‘promising actress’ and featured in Tatler magazine
A mother who is missing with her newborn baby and partner was a “talented actress”, according to friends (Thomas Kingsley writes).
The mother and baby belong to an aristocratic household that once possessed a sprawling country estate with links to the royal family, as revealed by The Independent.
As concern for the family grows, worried friends have spoken out about the former Tatler magazine babe of the month who enrolled at East 15 drama school in Essex before dropping out in 2016. Speaking to The Sunday Times, a former friend revealed that she had been a promising actress in her youth.
Mother missing with newborn baby was ‘talented actress’ and featured in Tatler
Mother missing with newborn baby is part of aristocratic family with links to the Queen Mother
Thursday 19 January 2023 04:30 , Shweta Sharma
A mother missing with her partner and newborn baby belongs to an aristocratic family which used to own a sprawling country estate and has close links to the royal family.
Constance Marten, 35, is the granddaughter of Mary Anna Marten, a British Museum trustee whose godmother was the late Queen Mother, and who used to own the Crichel estate in Dorset.
Ms Marten, her partner Mark Gordon and their child were last seen on Thursday evening after their car broke down on the M61 motorway, at which point they left the road safely and walked towards Anchor Lane bridge, near Bolton.
Mother missing with newborn baby belongs to aristocratic family with royal links
Newborn hasn’t been seen by doctor in weeks, say police in latest appeal
Thursday 19 January 2023 01:00 , Liam James
Police have stressed that Constance Marten and Mark Gordon’s newborn child has not been seen by a doctor in weeks, as officer issued their latest appeal for the missing family.
Metropolitan Police’s Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford, who is leading the investigation, said: “It has now almost been two weeks since Mark and Constance’s car broke down on the M61 near Bolton and they have been on the move all that time with a newborn baby.
“As far as we are aware, neither Constance nor the baby have received medical attention since it was born. Our priority is to ensure the baby, and indeed both Constance and Mark, are safe and well.
“Once again, I appeal directly to you Constance and Mark. Please do the right thing for your baby and get in touch with us so that we know that you are all doing okay.”
DS Basford said the couple were last seen more than one week ago in East Ham in the London Borough of Newham.
Constance Marten and partner have cash to live on, say police
Thursday 19 January 2023 00:00 , Liam James
Constance Marten and Mark Gordon have a substantial amount of cash, allowing them to live off-grid, police have said.
The aristocrat’s daughter, the convicted rapist and their baby had no luggage with them after most of their belongings were destroyed in a car fire, and are using cash to pay for taxis and places to stay.
The couple are understood to have lived an isolated life since meeting in 2016, with then-drama student Ms Marten cutting off ties with family and friends.
Last September, they began moving around the country, renting AirBnBs for brief periods before going missing after abandoning their car on 5 January.
