A driver has expressed deep regret after leaving Constance Marten’s baby beside a blazing car on a motorway, revealing that he had touched the infant’s head and said, “God bless,” before departing.
Marten, 37, and her partner Mark Gordon, 50, are currently facing a retrial at the Old Bailey, accused of the gross negligence manslaughter of their daughter Victoria. The prosecution alleges the couple failed to provide adequate care, leading to the baby’s tragic death.
The court heard that Marten and Gordon had kept Victoria’s birth a secret after their four other children were taken into care. Their desperate flight from authorities began on 5 January 2023, when their Peugeot car burst into flames on the M61 near Bolton, Greater Manchester.
‘I have to think about that a lot’
Driver Ken Hudson, who had pulled over to alert emergency services, described how he saw a woman—later identified as Marten—holding a bundle with a baby’s head visible, showing wisps of hair.
Testifying in court on Wednesday, Hudson became visibly emotional, recalling how he had asked Marten:
“Is the baby all right?”
She had simply replied:
“She’s fine.”
Before leaving, Hudson said he had touched the infant’s head, found it cold, and uttered a Christian blessing.
“I’m a Christian man, have been all my life… It’s what I’ve always done,” he explained. “I only touched the baby and said ‘God bless’ and then got in my car.”
However, defence lawyer Francis FitzGibbon KC challenged his recollection, suggesting he had not actually touched the baby.
Visibly moved, Hudson replied:
“Certain things touch me because it was my thought all the way through… If I had stayed there until the police arrived, there could have been a different outcome for that baby. It plays on my mind. With the greatest respect, sir, I did touch that baby’s head and I did say ‘God bless’ before I got back into my car.”
Hudson also recounted a brief exchange with Mark Gordon, saying:
“I asked him where he was going, and he just motioned away from me, saying, ‘Up there’ over the barrier.”
The frantic search for baby Victoria
Following the fire, police launched an urgent manhunt after discovering a placenta in the burnt-out vehicle. The prosecution alleges that Marten and Gordon then embarked on a journey across England, using taxis and staying in hotels and Airbnbs, eventually hiding in a tent on the South Downs.
The jury heard that Victoria died during this period, possibly from hypothermia or suffocation due to the unsafe sleeping arrangements in the tent.
The child’s lifeless body was found on 27 February 2023, stuffed into a shopping bag, inside a disused shed near Brighton.
Hotel worker’s testimony
Earlier in the trial, the court heard a statement from Cathy Lloyd, a hotel receptionist who checked Marten into the Ibis Hotel at Lymm Services, Warrington, hours before the fire.
Marten gave a false name, claiming to be a freelance journalist, and appeared extremely tired, Lloyd said.
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“She made conversation and was very sweet and conversational. She said she had lost her credit card and wanted to pay cash.”
Marten also mentioned her brother being in a play, prompting Lloyd to share her email and phone number, but she never heard back.
Shortly afterwards, Gordon entered reception. Lloyd recalled:
“He appeared very moody. He did not reply when I asked if he had checked in, which I found unnerving.”
Crucially, Lloyd saw no sign of a baby or baby-related items, and the couple never mentioned their child.
A secret life on the run
The prosecution alleges Marten and Gordon failed to provide basic necessities for Victoria’s survival and even carried her around hidden in a shopping bag or concealed under Marten’s coat.
Despite being from a wealthy background, Marten had access to a trust fund, receiving £3,400 just before the events unfolded, yet allegedly failed to use it for proper accommodation and care.
Both defendants, of no fixed address, deny gross negligence manslaughter and causing or allowing their daughter’s death between 4 January and 27 February 2023.
They have, however, already been convicted of concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice in a previous trial.
The retrial at the Old Bailey continues.
