A woman on trial for the manslaughter of her newborn daughter has claimed her family accused her of having children to sell them on the black market. Constance Marten, 36, and her partner Mark Gordon are charged with killing baby Victoria after taking her to live in a tent to prevent social services from taking her away.
Under cross-examination at the Old Bailey, Marten told the court that her children were 'stolen' by the state. She said: 'It is abhorrent. My children were stolen from me by the state, there is no other way to say it.' She claimed a family member obtained a court order banning her from leaving the country, alleging she was 'bearing children to sell on the black market' and was a drug addict, accusations she described as 'wholly unfounded'.
Marten said she planned to take Victoria abroad illegally after the baby's first three months, and if that failed, she intended to find a carer on Gumtree to take the child abroad under a false name. She told jurors: 'I would have found one on Gumtree. I would meet them and live with them.'
The court heard that the couple went on the run after their four other children were taken into care. Baby Victoria's remains were found in a Lidl bag in a shed on March 1, 2023. Marten previously told the jury she fell asleep with Victoria in her jacket and woke to find her dead. She said: 'I do feel responsible for falling asleep on her if that’s what happened.'
Both defendants deny manslaughter by gross negligence, perverting the course of justice, concealing the birth of a child, child cruelty, and causing or allowing the death of a child. The trial continues.
