10 July 2023 , 14:06
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An aristocrat and her partner are facing two more charges following the death of their baby daughter.
Constance Marten and Mark Gordon were charged with manslaughter by gross negligence on March 2 after the body of two-month-old Victoria was found in Brighton.
They were also charged with concealing a child’s birth and perverting the course of justice.
Ahead of a hearing at the Old Bailey on Monday, it emerged that the defendants face new charges of child cruelty and causing or allowing the death of a child.
It is claimed they caused the baby’s death by their own “unlawful act” or failed to “take such steps as could reasonably have been expected” to protect the baby.
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Marten appeared by video link from Bronzefield prison (PA)
Gordon appeared from Belmarsh jail (PA)The alleged offences are said to have taken place between January 4 and February 27.
Marten, 36, and Gordon, 49, of no fixed address, appeared from custody before Judge Mark Lucraft KC.
Marten appeared by video link from Bronzefield prison and Gordon from Belmarsh jail, and spoke only to confirm their identities.
Marten wore a pink and white floral print shirt and Gordon a grey tracksuit for the short hearing.
Judge Lucraft put a plea and case management hearing back from August 18 to September 22 and confirmed the provisional trial has been set for January 2 next year.
A further mention hearing was set for August 25.
Victoria’s remains were found in a plastic bag in a locked shed at an overgrown allotment in the Hollingbury area of Brighton on March 1.
Police officers searching woodland at Wild Park Local Nature Reserve, near Moulsecoomb, Brighton (PA)An initial post-mortem examination was unable to establish a cause of death.
The discovery came after Marten and Gordon were arrested in Stanmer Villas in the city. Police had been trying to find the defendants for several weeks.
The pair, who had been missing since early January, were avoiding police since the infant was born in early January, moving around the country, paying for everything in cash, and covering their faces when on CCTV.
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At the end of February, doorbell footage showed the final moments before Marten and Gordon were arrested by the police.
The arguing couple were caught on doorbell footage bickering at Stanmer Villas, Brighton, moments before officers finally caught up with the couple.
After their arrest, Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford told reporters: "I can confirm that they were initially arrested on suspicion of child neglect.
"I can now confirm that they have been further arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter. They remain in custody at police stations in Sussex."