Latvian women who stole 'staggering' £5,500 haul of handbags, clothes and shoes from Britain's biggest designer retail outlet and tried to escape in BMW face jail

By AIDAN RADNEDGE, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Published: 13:43, 7 August 2026 | Updated: 13:52, 7 August 2026 Three Latvian women are facing jail terms after stealing a £5,500 haul of clothes, handbags and shoes from one of the UK's largest designer retail outlets.  Dollaresa Pauce, 27, Estera Stepane, 30 and Raksana Kleina, 24, stole sunglasses, clothing, handbags and footwear from various shops after driving 75 miles to Cheshire Oaks in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire. During their spree on June 6 this year the all-female crime gang, who live in Barnsley, targeted Sunglasses Hut, Hugo Boss, Levis, Nike and Paul Costello which sell their brands at the 145-store complex. Other shops looted by them included Dr Martens, Calvin Klein, French Connection and Coach Store. The women were arrested after security staff at Cheshire Oaks called police when they spotted them attempting to escape with their stash of retail goodies into a waiting BMW 3-series. The gang initially dropped some of the stolen items as they tried to run away from officers but were tracked down nearby. Police discovered a further stash of stolen items in the getaway BMW in a nearby Sainsbury's car park. Pauce, Stepane and Kleina stole between them items worth £5,457, including £1,936 worth of Sunglasses from Sunglasses Hut and £1,395 worth of clothing from Hugo Boss. Dollaresa Pauce, 27, Estera Stepane (pictured), 30 and Raksana Kleina, 24, stole sunglasses, clothing, handbags and footwear after driving to Cheshire Oaks in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire. The gang, including getaway driver Raksana Kleina (pictured) targeted Sunglasses Hut, Hugo Boss, Levis, Nike and Paul Costello which sell their brands at the 145-store complex Dollaresa Pauce (pictured), 27, is among the three women now facing potential jail sentences Some of the goods were recovered - but a jacket belonging to Hugo Boss and jeans belonging to Levi's were unable to be resold having been damaged when attempts were made to remove the tags. Inquiries revealed Kleina, who was driving the BMW, had no driving licence and was uninsured to drive the 155mph six-speed automatic. At Chester magistrates' court, Pauce - who came to the UK with her parents when aged 10 - pleaded guilty to nine offences of theft involving goods totalling £2,620. Stepane admitted eight offences of theft relating to goods worth £1,999. Getaway driver Kleina, 24, admitted five charges of theft relating to items worth £838 and to driving without a licence or insurance. All were bailed but face up to 26 weeks' jail under sentencing guidelines. They were banned from entering Cheshire pending a further hearing at Sheffield next month. Prosecutor Derryn Gibney: 'On June 6, officers were called to Cheshire Oaks to reports of three females who had made off from Cheshire Oaks having stolen a large quantity of goods. Dollaresa Pauce (left), 27, and 30-year-old Estera Stepane (right) are pictured outside court Stepane (pictured) admitted eight offences of theft relating to goods worth £1,999 Inquiries revealed Raksana Kleina (pictured), who was driving the BMW, had no driving licence and was uninsured to drive the 155mph six-speed automatic 'The females ran away from the police. The women dropped a large amount of items which were later recovered by security and officers located the three females. 'One of the officers found a key to a BMW which was left in the car park of a nearby Sainsbury's. 'A search was conducted and a large quantity of stolen goods was found from various shops in the Cheshire Oaks as outlined in the charges. 'There was some degree of planning and group activity on the part of the defendants. 'For Hugo Boss, there was a jacket which was recovered but no longer able to be resold. For Levi's a pair of jeans had a tag removed and could not be resold.' Pauce had a previous conviction for shoplifting from 2021. Her solicitor Richard Sibeon said: 'She is a single lady, a mother of two children, aged two and seven. 'She lives in Barnsley and has been in the UK for 18 years. She came with her parents who still live in Barnsley and she was about 10 when she came to the UK. The women including Estera Stepane (pictured) were arrested after security staff at Cheshire Oaks called police when spotting them attempting to escape into a waiting BMW 3-series At Chester magistrates' court, Dollaresa Pauce (pictured) , who came to the UK with her parents when aged 10, admitted nine offences of theft involving goods totalling £2,620. Getaway driver Raksana Kleina (pictured), 24, admitted five charges of theft relating to items worth £838 and to driving without a licence or insurance. 'Clearly she has put herself in an awful amount of trouble coming together to Cheshire with two other young women. 'I always find the values of the items eye watering and staggering - £1,300 for instance for four pairs of sunglasses. 'Most of the items were recovered but some Hugo Boss goods were damaged because of the attempts to remove the security tag.' Stepane did not attend the hearing as she was in Scotland, preparing to fly back to Latvia for a family funeral. Her lawyer Ava Seymour said: 'Her grandmother has passed away and she cares for her mother full time. She is struggling with her mental health.' The court heard Kleina was due to be interviewed for a pre-sentence report but because of a lack of time the report had not been done. District Judge Ian Barnes ordered a background report in her case. Located off Junction 10 of the M53, Cheshire Oaks is the largest outlet centre in the United Kingdom, with 145 stores. It was hailed as the first designer outlet village in Europe when it opened in March 1995.