The earmuffs were found by officers searching for the new-born baby this morning (Picture: PA/Facebook)
Police searching for Constance Marten’s missing new-born have found pink earmuffs close to where she was arrested.
Photos from the scene in Brighton show a number of officers bagging up the fluffy headwear, though it is unclear whether they belong to the missing child.
The aristocrat and her partner Mark Gordon were arrested last night on suspicion of child neglect issues – but their newborn baby was not with them, and they have not revealed where it is.
Her dad Napier has spoken of his ‘immense relief’ that his estranged daughter has been found, adding this was ‘tempered by the very alarming news her baby has yet to be found’.
The couple have been 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.
They were finally arrested at around 9.30pm on Monday by officers from Sussex Police in Stanmer Villas, Brighton, after a tip-off from a member of the public, but the newborn was not with them.
Officers are now desperately scouring a large area between Brighton and Newhaven to try to find the infant, who has not had any medical attention since birth in early January.
A pair of pink child’s earmuffs have been found in Roedale Valley Allotments, Brighton (Picture: PA)
Officers were seen puttin the earmuffs into evidence bags (Picture: PA)
It is not clear if the earmuffs belong to the missing child (Picture: PA)
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Senior investigating officer Detective Superintendent Lewis Basford said: ‘It is a vast area and at present we are looking in the local vicinity to where the couple were arrested last night, seeking a shelter or location for where they may have been holed up and hopefully where the baby is present.
‘The arrest location was close to open land and the couple were moving towards that land. And that’s why we are focusing heavily on where we are right now.
‘We know that they travel, we know they travel long distances.
‘My plea to the members of the public here in Brighton and crossing over towards Newhaven is please be vigilant in the open land where you are, in the outbuildings that you may have on your own property, and assist us in that way by being vigilant.’
Authorities previously believed the couple had been sleeping rough in a blue tent, and had avoided being traced by the police by moving around frequently and keeping their faces covered in CCTV images.
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.
Handout photo issued by the Metropolitan Police of a CCTV image of Mark Gordon and Constance Marten on Whitechapel Road in London (Picture: PA)
Police search teams scouring an area of woodland next to Golf Drive in Brighton (Picture: PA)
Ms Marten and her partner Mark Gordon are in police custody (Picture: PA)
Scotland Yard said the pair were located and arrested by officers from Sussex Police in Stanmer Villas (Picture: metro.co.uk)
The aristocrat’s daughter whose family had links to the Royals
Ms Marten, 35, comes from a wealthy aristocratic family, while Mr Gordon, 48, is a sex offender who served 20 years in US jail for rape and battery.
The couple are understood to have lived an isolated life since meeting in 2016, with then-drama student Ms Marten cutting off ties with family and friends.
She grew up in Crichel House, a Dorset estate, as part of an eminent family who had links to the Royals.
According to the Sunday Times, her grandmother was a playmate of Princess Margaret, while her father Napier Marten was a page to Queen Elizabeth.
The newspaper reported that the family put the Dorset estate on the market in 2010 for £100million, before its sale to an American buyer.
Photo released by police of Constance Marten (Picture: PA)
She and Mark Gordon spent nearly two months on the run (Picture: PA)
Last September, Ms Marten and Mr Gordon began moving around the country, renting AirBnBs for brief periods.
On January 5, they were on the M61 when their car broke down and caught fire near junction four at Farnworth, Bolton.
Each time Ms Marten and Mr Gordon were seen on CCTV, they covered their faces or looked away, and kept the baby covered up.
Both her parents had pleaded for Ms Marten to contact police, saying they were ‘deeply concerned’ for their grandchild’s safety.
In an audio appeal, made through The Independent, Mr Marten said: ‘Darling Constance, even though we remain estranged at the moment, I stand by, as I have always done and as the family has always done, to do whatever is necessary for your safe return to us.
‘I beseech you to find a way to turn yourself and your wee one in to the police as soon as possible so you and he or she can be protected.
‘Only then can a process of healing and recovery begin, however long it may take, however difficult it may be.
‘I would like you to understand that the family will do all that is needed for your wellbeing.
‘And I also wish you to understand you are much, much loved, whatever the circumstances.
‘We are deeply concerned for your and your baby’s welfare. The past eight years have been beyond painful for all the family as well as your friends, as they must have been for you, and to see you so vulnerable again is testing in the extreme.’
Ms Marten’s parents both pleaded with her to come forward (Picture: Facebook)
In an open letter, her mother Mrs de Selliers wrote: ‘I know you well enough; you are focused, intelligent, passionate and complex with so much to offer the world. So many of your friends have come forward to say such positive things about you, assuring us of their warmest love and support for you and your family.
‘You have made choices in your personal adult life which have proven to be challenging, however I respect them, I know that you want to keep your precious new-born child at all costs.
‘With all that you have gone through this baby cannot be removed from you but instead needs looking after in a kind and warm environment.
‘I want to help you and my grandchild. You deserve the opportunity to build a new life, establish a stable family and enjoy the same freedoms that most of us have.
‘Constance, I will do what I can to stand alongside you and my grandchild. You are not alone in this situation. We will support you in whatever way we can.
‘I am ready to do what it takes for you to recover from this awful experience so you can thrive and enjoy motherhood. I love you and miss you, Mum xx.’
Officers were seen putting the earmuffs into evidence bags this morning after they were found in shrubbery close to the scene.
