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Individuals of an Italy-based family of thieves who stole over £1.2m worth of goods, among them from ex- NUFC forward Isak, have been ordered to return just £1 per person.

Brothers Valentino and Giacomo Nikolov, their female sibling Jela Jovanovic and her son Charlie Jovanovic travelled to the north-east of England to burgle three houses in April 2024.

The group of four were jailed for between six and 10 years in May 2025.

At a proceeds of crime proceeding at Newcastle Crown Court, Jela Jovanovic and the Nikolov brothers were ordered to pay back £1 each while Charlie must pay over a thousand pounds.

Particulars of the Break-ins

The court was told the group came by ferry in the UK on March 27, 2024 and used a RV as their "base of operations", which they parked at a service area and Durham service service stations while utilizing another car to scout out targets and carry out burglaries.

On 31 March they stole more than £1m of goods including designer clothing, purses, jewellery and a CBE medal from a house on Clayton Road in Jesmond, while the owners were away.

The next evening, the gang broke into a house on a gated cul-de-sac in Whitburn, and took luxury bags, valuables and shoes worth over £100,000.

Following surveillance of Newcastle United's training ground for 48 hours, they then struck at the home of Swedish player Alexander Isak in Darras Hall, Ponteland on April 4, taking £10,000 in money, sixty-eight thousand pounds worth of jewelry and the striker's £120,000 luxury car.

The gang, who were portrayed by prosecutors as professional itinerant burglars, used hand coverings and face coverings, turned their mobile devices on silent as they neared their targets and strapped a license plate, which had been stolen from a auto shop in a town, on to their vehicle with rubber straps.

They were apprehended in the Birmingham on 13 April.

Court Hearings and Rulings

Valentino Nikolov had pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to burglary but was found guilty by the court, while his family members had all submitted guilty pleas to the identical accusation.

At the proceeds of crime session, prosecutor the prosecution said each of the burglars had benefited from their crimes to the amount of £1,266,285.93, which was determined by what the affected parties said they had lost.

But Charlie was the sole individual deemed to have any money that could be "realised", specifically £1,135.50 which had already been seized by police, the court was informed, with two weeks to be spent in prison if he failed to pay.

The other three had no assets or assets so were ordered to make a nominal fee of £1 each, with seven days in prison the consequence if the money was not paid.

The judge Spragg said if they were discovered with property in the coming years, "such as operating Italy in a fast car or owning a property", prosecutors could initiate new proceedings to "satisfy the amount outstanding".