A witness has described the moment they spotted missing Constance Marten and Mark Gordon just moments before they were arrested.
CCTV footage appearing to show missing Constance Marten and her partner Mark Gordon just moments before they were arrested on Monday night.
The pair, believed to be Constance and Mark, were spotted walking along Stanmer Villas in Hollingdean – South at 8.40pm, and north at 9.25pm – Shortly before they were arrested by police.
The owner of the CCTV footage said : “We only noticed the footage of them after it all unravelled on Tuesday morning.”
Video below: The pair walking north in Stanmer Villas, moments before they were arrested.
They were understood to be returning from a convenience store in nearby Hollingbury Place when police officers swooped in on the area to arrest the couple, who have been on the run for 54 days.
The resident, who wished not to be named, added: “He was walking down with a stick, and on the way back – with his shopping – he was dragging the stick under his arms.”
The video also shows the pair walking a few metres apart having a loud, unintelligible conversation between each other.
- Read more: Constance Marten: Risk to missing baby is 'as high as it's been' as search continues
The resident who captured the footage on their CCTV camera claims to have seen the pair in the shop, when he was going to play the lottery, on Sunday, February 26. They said: “The lady went into the shop, and when she came out, she started quietly arguing with the black guy.
“Subconsciously, I knew something wasn’t right. But I’ve not realised this until today.”
Video below: The pair walking south in Stanmer Villas.
Metropolitan Police detective superintendent Lewis Basford said officers are looking into footage shared online of Gordon seen with a stick before he was arrested – adding that there was sufficient intelligence to suggest the pair had spent most of their time in outdoor open spaces while avoiding police.
Aristocrat Constance and her partner Mark went missing on January 5, in Bolton near Manchester when they abandoned their burning car. Since then, a manhunt has taken place across the country for the pair and their new-born baby.
Until they were found by police on Monday night in Brighton, they were last seen in Newhaven in Cantercrow Hill on January 8.
Police believed they were living a nomadic lifestyle, sleeping rough in a blue tent.
They were arrested shortly before 9.30pm on Monday, on suspicion of child neglect. This changed to being suspected of gross negligence manslaughter of their baby - who is yet to be found.
A large search, with more than 200 officers from Sussex Police and the Metropolitan Police has been underway in Brighton and the surrounding areas. There was a focus on the Roedale Valley allotments, where specialist officers were systematically searching the area in the hope of finding evidence that may point to the baby's whereabouts.
At one point, officers seized a small, pink pair of child's earmuffs.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here