Driver regrets not staying after a car fire. He touched Constance Marten’s baby Victoria and said, “God bless”.
A driver named Ken Hudson stopped after their car caught fire on the M61 motorway. He spoke of his regret for leaving the scene and said he touched the baby’s head and whispered, “God bless”.
Marten and Gordon hid Victoria’s birth. Their four other kids were already taken into care. They abandoned their car near Bolton on January 5, 2023.
Hudson alerted emergency services and filmed the fire. He told jurors he wished he’d stayed, feeling a different outcome was possible. Hudson saw the baby’s head in her mother’s arms and asked if the baby was okay. Marten replied that she was fine.
He touched the baby’s cold head and gave his blessing, describing himself as a “tactile” man. He stated his Christian faith influenced his actions. A lawyer questioned if Hudson actually touched the baby. Hudson insisted he did, saying it affected him deeply; the thought that maybe he could have changed things.
He also spoke to Gordon asking where he was going. Gordon pointed vaguely and said, “up there.” It was a cold January night. Police searched for the baby after finding a placenta. Marten and Gordon traveled across England and lived “off grid” in a tent on the South Downs. The baby then died.
Prosecutors say Victoria died from hypothermia or smothering, allegedly in their tent. Her body was found in a shopping bag in a shed near Brighton. The couple was arrested on February 27, 2023.
A hotel receptionist, Cathy Lloyd, spoke about Marten before the fire. Marten checked into a hotel near Warrington, said her name was Caroline Marten, and claimed to be a freelance journalist. Lloyd found Marten “extremely well-spoken” but “very tired”. Marten chatted about her brother’s play, said she lost her credit card, and told her she wanted to return home.
Lloyd gave Marten her contact information but never heard back. Gordon then seemed “moody” when he entered, and didn’t reply to Lloyd, which she found “unnerving”. Lloyd never saw Marten and Gordon together, nor did she see a baby or baby items. Their body language didn’t imply they had a baby.
Prosecutors claim they didn’t care for the baby, carrying her in a shopping bag and even hiding her under a coat. Marten had access to funds and received money before the fire. Marten and Gordon deny all charges, including manslaughter and neglect. They were previously convicted of other charges related to hiding the birth. The retrial is ongoing.