Isak Burglars Instructed to Pay Only £1 Each from £1.2 Million Heists

Members of an Italian family of thieves who took over £1.2 million worth of goods, including from former Newcastle United forward Alexander Isak, have been ordered to return just £1 per person.

Brothers Valentino Nikolov and Giacomo, their female sibling Jela Jovanovic and her son Charlie journeyed to the north-east of England to raid multiple homes in spring 2024.

The foursome were jailed for from six and 10 years in May 2025.

At a proceeds of crime hearing at Newcastle Crown Court, Jela Jovanovic and the brothers Nikolov were instructed to pay back £1 per person while Charlie Jovanovic must pay £1,135.

Details of the Burglaries

The court previously heard the gang came by boat in the UK on March 27, 2024 and used a campervan as their "base of operations", which they stationed at Scotch Corner and Durham service rest stops while using a separate vehicle to search for targets and execute burglaries.

On March 31 they took more than £1m of goods such as designer clothing, handbags, jewelry and a CBE medal from a house on Clayton Road in Jesmond, Newcastle, while the owners were on holiday.

The next evening, the gang broke into a home on a gated cul-de-sac in Whitburn, and stole designer handbags, jewellery and footwear valued at more than one hundred thousand pounds.

Following surveillance of the football club's training ground for two days, they then acted at the residence of Swedish player Alexander Isak in Darras Hall on 4 April, taking £10,000 in money, £68,000 worth of jewelry and the player's one hundred twenty thousand pound luxury car.

The group, who were portrayed by the prosecution as experienced touring thieves, used hand coverings and face coverings, switched their mobile devices on silent as they neared their targets and attached a number plate, which had been taken from a garage in a town, on to their car with elastic bands.

They were arrested in the Birmingham on 13 April.

Court Hearings and Sentencing

Valentino had denied the burglary plot but was convicted by jurors, while his three relations had all entered guilty pleas to the same charge.

At the criminal gains session, prosecutor Daniel Cordey said each of the burglars had profited from their crimes to the amount of over £1.2 million, which was determined by what the victims said they had had stolen.

But Charlie was the only one found to have any funds that could be "recovered", namely over a thousand pounds which had previously been confiscated by police, the court was informed, with two weeks to be spent in prison if he failed to pay.

The other three had no money or property so were directed to pay a token amount of £1 each, with seven days in incarceration the consequence if the sum was not paid.

Judge Robert Spragg said if they were discovered with property in the coming years, "for example operating in Italy in a sports car or owning a property", prosecutors could seek new proceedings to "satisfy the amount outstanding".