A couple who went missing with their newborn child have been found and arrested, although their baby is still missing.
Constance Marten, 35, and her partner Mark Gordon, 48, were first reported missing after their car broke down and was found burning on the M61 near Bolton, Greater Manchester, on Thursday 5 January.
Sussex Police said they were spotted in Brighton by a member of the public just before 9.30pm on Monday before they were arrested and taken into police custody – an urgent search operation has been launched to find their baby.
Here, Sky News looks at what we know so far about the search.
First reported missing
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) released an appeal on Friday 6 January for information on the whereabouts of the couple and their baby.
They said the couple were last seen the day before, on Thursday 5 January, after breaking down by junction four of the M61 near Bolton.
The force said they had evidence suggesting Ms Marten, who comes from a wealthy family, had “very recently given birth, and neither her or the baby have been assessed by medical professionals”.
The couple left the car and walked towards Anchor Lane bridge, which links the Highfield and Little Hulton areas, at around 6.30pm.
They are believed to have paid in cash to travel first to Liverpool and then to Essex, possibly by taxi, according to the Manchester Evening News.
Police appealed directly to Ms Marten, saying their “number one priority” is to keep her “beautiful newborn safe”.
GMP also insisted officers “do not wish to interrupt their family life”.
Police reported there had been a “number of sightings” of the couple in Essex.
GMP, working alongside Essex Police, released CCTV showing someone they believed to be Ms Marten in a red shawl outside Harwich Port at 9am on Saturday 7 January.
The couple were also believed to have been spotted in Colchester.
“Our concern is to make sure Constance, Mark and baby are safe and well,” GMP said.
Couple seen in east London
The Metropolitan Police reported a sighting of the couple in east London.
The force shared CCTVshowing Ms Marten, with a red shawl around her head, and Mr Gordon, with his head lowered and apparently wearing a beanie hat, at East Ham station in Newham, east London, on Saturday 7 January.
Police believe the couple, who were at the station at some point between 10.30am and 12.30pm, took a taxi from Essex.
The couple were also seen buying camping gear on 7 January. Mr Gordon went into Argos in Whitechapel at 6.19pm, and bought a blue two-man tent, sleeping bags and two pillows.
The family was last seen walking along Brick Lane, towards Bethnal Green Road, at about 10pm that day. At 11.46pm they went to Flower and Dean Walk, where they dumped a number of items, including a pushchair.
Taxi to East Sussex
After being spotted on CCTV entering Flower and Dean Walk on Saturday evening, the pair got into a taxi to Haringey, north London.
At 1.24am on Sunday 8 January, they travelled from Haringey to Newhaven, East Sussex, where they were dropped off just outside the port at 4.56am.
They then walked to an overpass where the A259 crosses over the B2109 where they were seen sheltering from the rain.
The pair were spotted again on Sunday 8 January at 5.18am on Avis Road, Newhaven, from a petrol station forecourt CCTV. Around an hour later at 6.25am, they were seen from a house camera on Cantercrow Hill, Newhaven.
They were carrying a number of bags and their blue tent.
‘You’re putting the baby at risk’
Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford, who is leading the investigation, said in the Met’s original appeal: “We are growing increasingly concerned not only for their welfare, but for the welfare of their newborn child.
“Constance and Mark, I appeal directly to you, please think of your baby’s health and wellbeing and get in touch with us so we can ensure your child is medically well and has no underlying issues.”
In the latest appeal on 21 February, DS Basford said officers had been “working around the clock behind the scenes,” and have viewed more than “660 hours of CCTV” as part of their efforts.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
2:13
Midwife and police renew appeal for information on missing couple
Director of midwifery for Barts Health NHS Trust, Shereen Nimmo, also issued an appeal directly to Ms Marten, urging her to get medical checks done on her child.
She stressed that it was “not too late” for the child to have these checks done, but the longer the couple do not access medical care, the more they are “putting [their] baby at risk”.
Arrest in Brighton
Ms Marten and Mr Gordon were spotted in Brighton by a member of the public just before 9.30pm on Monday 28 February, Sussex Police said.
Bosses of leading high street businesses are set to lead a new drive to cut crime and get ex-offenders into stable jobs.
It’s part of a government initiative creating 11 new regional employment councils across England and Wales.
Leaders from firms including the Co-Op, Iceland, Greggs, and Oliver Bonas will provide voluntary advisory roles in conjunction with probation, job centres, and the Department for Work and Pensions.
The idea is to help ex-prisoners find work while they serve the remainder of their sentence in the community.
The government says roughly 80% of offending is reoffending, while the latest data shows offenders unemployed six weeks after leaving jail have a reoffending rate more than twice that of those in work – 35% versus 17%.
The employment councils will supplement the work of existing employment advisory boards, created by the former Timpsons chief executive, now prisons minister, Lord Timpson.
The advisory boards bring local leaders into 93 individual jails to help provide education and training advice, but largely stop at the prison gates.
More on Prisons
Related Topics:
The government wants the new councils to act as better bridges for offenders, under one umbrella – bringing together probation, prisons and local employers, helping prison leavers look for work.
This will include connections with work coaches at job centres that will provide mock interviews, CV advice and training opportunities in the community.
Lord Timpson called the new scheme and partnering with business a “win win”.
“Getting former offenders into stable work is a sure way of cutting crime and making our streets safer,” he said.
Last month Sky News heard from former offender, Terry, now employed at the cobblers and key cutters Timpsons, about what he calls an “invisible stigma” for those with criminal records seeking employment.
He said getting a secure job was life-changing because without other options “you’re probably going to think about doing crime”.
Annie Gail, head of social impact at Cook Foods, which is taking part of the government’s new scheme, also told Sky News that prison leaver programmes such as theirs are “challenging”.
She said having ex-offenders in public-facing roles “can cause concern” but insists “good business is about more than just turning a profit” and instead is about being “a force for good in society”.
The new scheme is set to start next week, and plans to get thousands of ex-offenders into stable jobs, away from a life of crime.
A 17-year-old boy has been stabbed to death in Bedford.
Police say Thomas Taylor was walking along Greenhill Street, close to Bedford Bus Station, when he was attacked by a group of men at 5.50pm on Wednesday.
He was taken to hospital after suffering serious injuries and died a short time later.
A murder inquiry has been launched.
The attackers have not been caught. They were described as black and wearing dark clothes. They ran away in the direction of Hassett Street and Greyfriars car park, police said.
Detective Chief Inspector Katie Dounias said: “This is an absolutely shocking incident in which a teenage boy has been stabbed to death in a busy town centre.
“We have a dedicated team of detectives working on this investigation and supporting Thomas’s family at this incredibly difficult time for them.
“I would urge anyone who saw what happened or has any information to come forward and speak to police and help us bring those responsible to justice.
“We’re aware that there are images and videos circulating on social media, please refrain from sharing any such clips and instead contact police.”
Bedford Academy headteacher Chris Deller said: “We are deeply upset and shocked to hear the sad news that a Bedford Academy student has lost their life.”
He described Thomas as a “popular, well-liked, and respected lad” who had recently finished Year 11, before heading onto sixth form.
“Our focus now is on supporting the family through such a difficult period, whilst helping our students and wider community to come to terms with such a tragic loss,” he added.
A Romanian grooming gang has been convicted of sexually exploiting 10 vulnerable women in Dundee.
Four men and one woman were found guilty of dozens of offences – including rape – following an extensive investigation into sexual exploitation, human trafficking, and the supply of drugs in the Tayside area.
Marian Cumpanasoiu, 37, Remus Stan, 34, Catalin Dobre, 44, Cristian Urlateanu, 41, and Alexandra Bugonea, 34, denied any wrongdoing but on Thursday were convicted following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.
Detective Inspector Scott Carswell branded the offenders “deplorable” in an interview with Sky News’ Scotland correspondent, Connor Gillies.
The detective said the gang plied the women with alcohol and free Class A drugs at parties before coercing them into sexual activity, “which a lot of them didn’t want to do”.
He said: “But as things progressed, they were so addicted to the drugs that they knew the only way they could get the drugs was to perform the sexual acts that they were having to get involved in.”
DI Carswell said the gang got the women addicted to drugs in a bid to control them and keep them coming back for more.
He added: “They’ve had no thought as to the impact this is having on the victims. It’s been quite controlled in that they knew what they were doing.”
The gang will be sentenced at a later date.
Police Scotland said the offenders were arrested and charged as part of Operation Recloir, which was launched in late 2021 to target a gang of suspected human traffickers in the Tayside area.
DI Carswell said the inquiry initially focused on brothel-keeping in Dundee and the suspected trafficking of Romanian females into the country.
He added: “However, into the summer of 2022 we started to receive information that the crime group were targeting vulnerable Dundee females, and it looked like they were grooming them and coercing them with gifts of free drugs and other things until it moved on to the victims having to get involved in sexual activity to get the free drugs.
“And unfortunately, this got them addicted to the class A drugs that had been provided.”
DI Carswell said many of the victims identified believed they were the girlfriends of the men involved and did not realise they were being “groomed and used”.
The detective said the women were looking to be “cared for”, noting: “However, I believe that the end goal here was to groom the females and possibly move them into prostitution.”
DI Carswell said it was important to build up the victims’ “trust and confidence” in order to get them to engage with the force.
He said: “That did take a lot of patience, and it was something that I was passionate about with my inquiry team from the start.”
DI Carswell added work remains ongoing to ensure the women’s welfare and long-term safeguarding.
The detective believes his team identified all the victims, but not everyone wished to engage with the inquiry.
DI Carswell added: “What I would say to them is even at this time if they don’t want to engage with the police, the support’s always there if they need help with anything on the back of this.”