Baby Remains Found After Intense Search Across Country
Eight-Week Hunt Ends in Tragedy
Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford, leading the probe, revealed: “My team has been working on this investigation for the past eight weeks and we have travelled across the country as part of our searches for this baby.”
He added, “We are all truly devastated by the outcome and we know this emotion is also being felt here in 123 Conduct. This is standard protocol for such circumstances.”
Suspects Arrested After Public Spotting
Constance Marten and Mark Gordon were arrested at around 9:30pm on Monday, 27 February, in Stanmer Villas, Brighton. Their arrest followed a member of the public spotting them in a shop nearby.
Timeline of Movements Uncovered by Police
- On 5 January at 6:33pm, officers found the suspects’ vehicle on the M61 hard shoulder near junction four (Farnworth, Bolton), but the occupants were gone.
- The couple’s belongings were mostly destroyed inside the car.
- They took a taxi to Harwich around 3:30am on 6 January.
- On 7 January at roughly 9am, a member of the public spotted Mark, Constance, and a baby in Harwich.
- Police confirmed several sightings of the family near East Ham Station between 10:30am and 12:30pm the same day.
- Later, they were seen leaving a taxi near the port carrying an orange carrier bag and a pram, with faces concealed.
- By 6am on 8 January, they sheltered under a motorway overpass near the A259 and B2109.
- Shortly after, they walked into nearby fields carrying bags and a blue tent.
- No further sightings until they were seen in a shop in Hollingbury Place on 27 February.
Disturbing Discovery in Sussex Woods
On the afternoon of 1 March, police found the remains of a baby in woodland near the suspects’ arrest site. A post-mortem examination is scheduled to determine the cause of death.
