Missing couple and baby last seen in Newham ‘have cash to live off grid’ say police

A couple missing for 11 days with their newborn baby 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, 35, comes from a wealthy aristocratic family, while Mr Gordon, 48, is a sex offender who served 20 years in US jail for rape and battery.

Greater Manchester Police is leading an investigation with other forces and said on Wednesday they are concerned for mother and baby who have not had medical attention since the birth.

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.

She grew up in Crichel House, a Dorset estate, as part of an eminent family who had links to the Royals.

According to the Sunday Times, her grandmother was a playmate of Princess Margaret, while her father Napier Marten was a page to Queen Elizabeth.

The newspaper reported that the family put the Dorset estate on the market in 2010 for £100million, before its sale to an American buyer.

Last September, Ms Marten and Mr Gordon began moving around the country, renting AirBnBs for brief periods.

On January 5, they were on the M61 when their car broke down and caught fire near junction four at Farnworth, Bolton.

The couple then walked to Anchor Lane Bridge, where they got a taxi to Liverpool before getting another to Harwich in Essex.

They were seen around Colchester on January 6 and 7, when they took another taxi to East Ham Station in Newham, London, where they were last seen.

Each time Ms Marten and Mr Gordon are seen on CCTV, they are covering their faces or looking away, and have kept the baby covered up.

Investigators say the couple appear to know how to evade authorities – making the search for them harder.

Police 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.

Detectives 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.

Some 200 officers are working on the search and have scoured through more than 200 hours of CCTV footage since the pair were last seen on January 7.

Mr Gordon’s conviction relates to a Florida attack on a woman in her early 20s when he was 14.

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.”

Anyone who has information on the family’s whereabouts should call the incident room on 020 7175 0785 or call Crimestoppers anonynmously on 0800 555 111.