A COUPLE who were planning to sell fake designer goods to get out of debt broke up because of the stress of getting caught, a court heard.

Police discovered in December that Lee Stevens, 31, of Elborough Road, and Amanda Ramsdale, 33, of Florey Court, had fake goods which they were intending to sell.

These included 16 pairs of counterfeit Ugg boots, four fake Barbour jackets, three pairs of imitation Hunter wellies and five pairs of fake Adidas trainers.

Stevens and Ramsdale, who pleaded guilty at Swindon Magistrates Court on Wednesday, were each given a two-year conditional discharge.

The court heard Stevens has debts of around £17,000 and both defendants had seen the venture as a chance to make some cash.

Lee Mott, defending Stevens, said: “It seems the stress and worry of the prosecution has caused their relationship to split. This particular venture has cost Mr Stevens far more that it actually has yielded in terms of any benefit.

“What led to this primarily is that Mr Stevens has a staggering amount of debt. At the time, he knew bailiffs would be coming. There is a considerable and very dark hole of debt that he was trying to deal with at the time.

“He is aware that his partner has considerable debt problems as well.

“An opportunity was presented. It was a situation where Mr Stevens thought easy money could be made.”

The pair also had two fake Louis Vuitton handbags, an imitation Adidas T-shirt and a counterfeit Stone Island jacket.

The court heard Stevens was candid in his interview with police during the investigation.

Terry McCarthy, defending Ramsdale, said: “It was an opportunity to relieve their financial pressures. They both lost.

“This has been a lesson to Miss Ramsdale. I am sure she won’t be back in this court again.”

The defendants paid about £400 for the full amount of goods but the court heard the price of genuine items would be considerably higher.

Andy Pritchard, prosecuting, said: “These are potentially designer items with high price tags. By possessing these items and selling them, the genuine trademark owners do lose out.”

Chairwoman of the magistrates, Caroline Bamber, said: “This was an unwise venture that has seen both your personal life disintegrate and given you a criminal record.”