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Individuals of an Italian clan of thieves who took over £1.2m worth of goods, among them from ex- NUFC forward Alexander Isak, have been ordered to pay back only £1 each.

Siblings Valentino and Giacomo Nikolov, their sister Jela and her son Charlie journeyed to the north-east of England to raid three houses in spring 2024.

The group of four were imprisoned for between a decade or less in May 2025.

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

Particulars of the Burglaries

The judge previously heard the group arrived by ferry in the United Kingdom on 27 March 2024 and employed a RV as their "headquarters", which they stationed at Scotch Corner and Durham rest stops while utilizing a separate vehicle to search for properties and carry out thefts.

On 31 March they took more than one million pounds of goods including high-end fashion, handbags, jewellery and a honor from a residence on Clayton Road in Jesmond, Newcastle, while the owners were on holiday.

The next evening, the gang entered a home on a private road in Whitburn, South Tyneside, and took luxury bags, valuables and footwear worth over £100,000.

After scouting out the football club's training ground for 48 hours, they then struck at the home of Sweden player Alexander Isak in Darras Hall on 4 April, taking £10,000 in money, sixty-eight thousand pounds worth of jewellery and the player's £120,000 Audi RS6.

The group, who were described by the prosecution as experienced itinerant thieves, wore gloves and masks, switched their phones off as they neared their objectives and strapped a license plate, which had been taken from a auto shop in a town, on to their vehicle with rubber straps.

They were apprehended in the Birmingham on 13 April.

Legal Proceedings and Rulings

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

At the criminal gains session, prosecutor Daniel Cordey said every one of the defendants had profited from their offenses to the amount of £1,266,285.93, which was determined by what the victims said they had lost.

But Charlie was the only one found to have any funds that could be "realised", namely over a thousand pounds which had already been seized by authorities, the court was informed, with two weeks to be spent in jail if he failed to pay.

The other three had no assets or assets so were directed to pay a token amount of £1 per person, with seven days in incarceration the result if the money was not paid.

Judge Robert Spragg said if they were found with property in the coming years, "such as operating Italy in a fast car or owning a home", prosecutors could seek further action to "satisfy the sum due".