Judge blasts 'arrogant' aristocrat and jails her over death of baby

An aristocrat and her lover who went on the run to stop their newborn daughter being taken into care were jailed for 14 years on Monday for killing the baby.

Millionaire heiress Constance Marten, 38, and Mark Gordon, 51, sparked a £1.2million national manhunt after disappearing with their baby Victoria, camping in the freezing cold and causing the infant's death from hypothermia.

Their four older children had already been removed by social services and Marten feared her fifth child would be taken away too.

On Monday, a judge said the 'arrogant' couple thought of no one but themselves when they fled, travelling around the country before camping in a flimsy tent on the South Downs in the middle of winter without even a hat or coat for their newborn.

'To most right-thinking people, their children are the most precious beings, to be nurtured and cared for, to be kept warm; to be fed and above all, to be loved,' Judge Mark Lucraft told the defendants.

'What you did towards baby Victoria, despite all you claim to have done, can only be described as neglect – neglect of the gravest and most serious type that led ultimately to her death by your gross negligence.'

But as they were both jailed for 14 years, it emerged on Monday that Marten is already planning for her release, boasting to a probation officer that she will regain access to her £2.4million family trust fund at the age of 40 and will be able to withdraw cash from another fund.

Marten was born into a life of wealth and privilege, her father a page to the late Queen and her grandmother a playmate of Princess Margaret.

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By contrast Gordon was jailed in the US for 40 years after he raped a woman at knifepoint at the age of 14, breaking into her home armed with hedge clippers, threatening: 'Don't scream or I'll kill your children.'

Scotland Yard spent more than £1.2million chasing the family around the country after discovering a placenta in their car when it exploded on a motorway in Manchester on January 5, 2023.

More than 100 officers pursued the couple as they fled in taxis, travelling hundreds of miles across the country from Bolton to Liverpool, then to Harwich in Essex, and on to east London before finally resorting to camping on the South Downs in the freezing cold.

A day later, after Victoria died in their flimsy freezing tent, the parents put their baby in a soiled nappy inside a Lidl 'bag for life'.

They dumped the body beneath an empty beer can and sandwich packaging hidden in a disused shed. 

Five police forces joined the hunt, devoting 1,000 officer hours to find the body after the pair refused to cooperate when they were arrested near Brighton after nearly two months on the run.

In July they were convicted of manslaughter by gross negligence, child cruelty, concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice in a case lasting two years which has cost taxpayers around £2.8million.

Condemning their 'shameful conduct', Judge Lucraft told the couple: 'You had the financial means and opportunity to raise your daughter in a safe environment and you chose not to do so.'

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Aristocrat Constance Marten jailed for 14 years for killing her newborn baby Victoria

He added: 'Over the course of the trial you have sought to put the blame for the baby's death on everyone else.' 

Philippa McAtasney, KC, representing Gordon, said he regretted making 'bad decisions'.

Thomas Godfrey, defending Marten, said she was suffering from a depressive 'mental disorder' at the time of Victoria's death, adding: 'The sorrow that Constance Marten feels is incalculable. 

She has always accepted that her baby died as a result of something that she did. That weighs very heavily on her conscience.'

Marten sighed as she was told she would serve two thirds of her 14-year sentence. Gordon showed no emotion as he was ordered to serve an extra four years on extended licence.

Mother's clemency plea for 'feisty' Constance Marten 

The mother of Constance Marten pleaded for clemency on Monday, saying her daughter's 'courage' in her fight for her children should not be overlooked.

Virginie De Selliers paid tribute to the 'feisty' 38-year-old, saying: 'What I do know is she showed sheer determination when fighting for her children and her daughter Victoria.

'It is my sincere hope that when considering her future, her courage and loyalty and deep sense of fairness are not overlooked.'

In an impassioned character reference statement, Mrs De Selliers said: 'I saw her grow from an inquisitive spirited little girl to a determined young woman always ready for an adventure. 

'She had a feisty spirit and never shied away from standing up for what she believed.

'Alongside her strength, she also had a fragility of nature. For all her brightness and bravery, she often doubted herself.

'She struggled with confidence and self-worth. But her loyalty and passion for others were unwavering.

'I was horrified by the way the court and the newspapers have portrayed her. The cruelty of the labels used does not reflect the daughter I remember.'

As the statement was read out, Marten stared ahead, refusing to acknowledge her mother in court.

A close friend of Marten's father, Napier Marten, said: 'He was expecting Constance to get a sentence on that scale. She has not shown any remorse.'