Constance Marten says wealthy family saw her as an 'embarrassment'

A woman accused alongside her partner of the gross negligence manslaughter of her daughter has told jurors that her wealthy family saw her as an "embarrassment".

Constance Marten, 37, and her partner Mark Gordon, 50, deny the gross negligence manslaughter of their daughter Victoria and causing or allowing her death between 4 January and 27 February 2023. Her body was discovered with rubbish inside a shopping bag in a disused shed near Brighton after the couple were arrested on 27 February 2023, following a high-profile hunt for the missing child.

At the Old Bailey on Thursday, Gordon, who is representing himself, asked Marten about if she recalled vehicles randomly stopping during the period they were together. Ms Marten told jurors on Thursday that they had been pursued by private investigators, and that multiple vehicles they had used stopped working and she found a GPS tracker on one.

Marten said: "There's a few people in my biological family who see me as an embarrassment and are scared I will speak out about them and will stop at nothing to get what they want." The defendant added: "Some people who are privileged think they are above the rules. "It is harrowing, you are up against these people who will stop at nothing, who have endless resources and connections." The Old Bailey previously heard that the couple were attempting to stop their fifth child being removed from them amid a police hunt for the missing baby, with Marten claiming her other children were "stolen by the state".

Marten comes from a wealthy family but she "never really had a strong connection" with them and they eventually became estranged, the court previously heard. Read more from Sky News:India will 'pay price' for strikes, Pakistan warnsIran rejects involvement in alleged embassy plotMan charged with stalking Jennifer Aniston She said on Thursday that her family were prejudiced towards Gordon and did not approve of their relationship.

Marten said that she was living in fear and that her "number one priority" was to protect her baby. She told jurors that she had found Victoria's death "very difficult to live with" but it "wasn't due to neglect in any way".

It is alleged Victoria was inadequately clothed in a babygrow and that Marten had got wet as she carried the infant underneath her coat. The prosecution alleges Victoria died from hypothermia or was smothered while co-sleeping in a "flimsy" tent on the South Downs, despite past warnings.

Marten told jurors the tent was intended to be a "pit stop" to avoid "prying eyes". She wept as she told them she would "turn back time" if she knew Victoria was in danger, adding that they "spent so long trying to protect her".

Jurors have been told the defendants were convicted at an earlier trial of concealing the birth of a child and perverting the course of justice. The trial continues..