A senior midwife has sent a direct plea to missing aristocrat mum Constance Marten - insisting it's 'not too late' to seek support for her baby. The 35-year-old disappeared last month with partner Mark Gordon, a 48-year-old convicted sex offender, and their newborn.
Police believe the trio could be anywhere in the UK, having travelled around the country since their car was found burning on the M61 in Bolton on January 5. It is not known if the baby has any health issues, and now a leading midwife in London has issued a personal appeal for Constance to speak to the NHS.
Shereen Nimmo, director of midwifery for Barts Health NHS Trust, said: “Constance, my name is Shereen and I’m here to speak to you as a midwife and a mother. I am not here to judge you but here to help you and your baby.
READ MORE: Mother of missing aristocrat Constance Marten pens emotional letter to 'darling daughter'
“I know that you really love your baby, and I know what an exciting and worrying time being a mum can be. And I want to make sure that you and your baby are OK and get the care you need.
“After you have a baby, midwives are there to check you are recovering physically and emotionally and adjusting to caring for your newborn. We check your baby is feeding properly and putting on weight, and they have screening tests to make sure their heart, hearing, hips and eye sight all look OK.
“We also check for some rare conditions and put care plans in place to support them if needed. But it’s not too late to have these checks done and to make sure your baby is healthy.
“You’re putting your baby at risk by not accessing medical care, so it’s really important that you come and see a midwife, doctor or another healthcare professional as soon as possible. Babies need a safe, warm environment and all new mums are given information about safe sleeping for their baby to prevent sudden infant death syndrome.
“We know the safest place for your baby to sleep is in a cot in the same room as you. Sleeping with your baby in an unsafe environment puts them at risk.
“We’re worried that without access to midwifery and medical care, your baby might not be getting the best start in life that we know you want for them. Please do the right thing for your baby and go to your nearest healthcare facility so my caring colleagues can take care of you and your baby. All we want to do is help you.”
Authorities believe the couple have been sleeping rough in a blue tent, and fear for the safety of the baby who has not had any medical attention since birth in early January. The couple and baby have not been seen since January 8.
They have so far avoided being traced by the police by moving around frequently and keeping their faces covered in CCTV images. Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford, from the Metropolitan Police, said around 50 officers are working on the case at any one time and more than 630 hours of CCTV has been viewed.
He said there have been more than 350 calls to police from the public with information following previous appeals. Det Supt Basford added: “All calls, I would say, have added something to the investigation."
But Det Supt Basford said the risk 'only increases day by day' when there is no further confirmed sightings, adding that he is appealing to the couple to think of the baby. A £10,000 reward is on offer for information that leads to them being found safe.
Investigators said that in the months before they vanished they built up a significant amount of cash and used it to pay for places to stay and taxis around the country. Det Supt Basford said police believe the cash would have lasted the couple well into February.
He added: “However we also know that to keep warm and keep under a roof and keep that baby safe that at some point they’ve had to reach out or seek some sort of lodgings away from the tent that they did use on the 8th when they were seen heading into the fields in Newhaven."
The detective said there are concerns that the money they have will be running out and he is calling on the couple to do 'the right thing' and come forward to seek the medical attention required. He does not believe the couple are being helped by anyone at this stage.
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 January 8. In an update earlier this month, the Metropolitan Police said they believed the family may be camping in Sussex.
But now it is thought that while there is nothing to suggest they have gone abroad, they could be anywhere in the whole of the UK. Miss Marten, who is from a wealthy aristocratic family, was a promising drama student when she first met Mr Gordon in 2016.
Since then the couple have led an isolated life, and in September, when Miss Marten was well into her pregnancy, began moving around rental flats. Gordon served 20 years in prison in the US for rape and battery committed when he was 14.
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