UK
Mother of missing woman with newborn baby tells ‘darling’ daughter in open letter ‘I want to help you’
The mother of a missing aristocrat who has been missing with her newborn baby and convicted sex offender boyfriend for more than a month has written an open letter to her daughter, pledging to support her.
Virginie de Selliers has vowed to stand by Constance Marten, 35, and her grandchild, telling her: “You are not alone in this situation. We will support you in whatever way we can.”
Police have been searching for Miss Marten, who is from a wealthy aristocratic family, and her partner Mark Gordon, 48, since their car was found burning on the M61 in Bolton, Greater Manchester, on 5 January.
It is believed the couple are sleeping rough in a blue tent in Sussex and there are fears for the safety of the baby, who has not had any medical attention since it was born in early January.
A CCTV image of a woman believed to be Constance Marten seen near Harwich Port in Essex
In the letter, sent to the PA news agency by a representative for the family, Mrs de Selliers says she wants to help Miss Marten care for her baby in a “kind and warm environment”.
She writes: “Open Letter to My Darling Daughter Constance.
“I know you well enough; you are focused, intelligent, passionate and complex with so much to offer the world. So many of your friends have come forward to say such positive things about you, assuring us of their warmest love and support for you and your family.
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Father’s plea to missing daughter
“You have made choices in your personal adult life which have proven to be challenging, however I respect them, I know that you want to keep your precious newborn child at all costs.
“With all that you have gone through this baby cannot be removed from you but instead needs looking after in a kind and warm environment.
“I want to help you and my grandchild. You deserve the opportunity to build a new life, establish a stable family and enjoy the same freedoms that most of us have.
“Constance, I will do what I can to stand alongside you and my grandchild. You are not alone in this situation. We will support you in whatever way we can.
“I am ready to do what it takes for you to recover from this awful experience so you can thrive and enjoy motherhood.
“I love you and miss you, Mum xx.”
Miss Marten with her partner Mark Gordon, who is a convicted sex offender
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Where have the couple been spotted?
Couple and baby sleeping in tent in sub-zero temperatures, police say
It is the first time that Miss Marten’s mother has said anything publicly about her daughter’s disappearance.
Last month her father Napier Marten, reportedly a former page to the late Queen, urged her to contact police.
The missing couple have so far avoided being traced by the police by moving around frequently and keeping their faces covered in CCTV images.
A £10,000 reward is on offer for information that leads to them being found safe.
The couple have been spotted on CCTV in east London
The couple travelled from Bolton to Liverpool, then to Harwich in Essex, then to east London and then to Newhaven in Sussex, where they were seen near the ferry port on 8 January.
Miss Marten was a promising drama student when she first met Mr Gordon in 2016.
Gordon served 20 years in prison in the US for rape and battery committed when he was 14.