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Members of an Italian clan of burglars who stole more than £1.2 million worth of items, including from former NUFC striker Alexander Isak, have been mandated to return just £1 per person.

Siblings Valentino and Giacomo Nikolov, their female sibling Jela and her child Charlie Jovanovic journeyed to the northeastern of England to raid multiple homes in April 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 and the brothers Nikolov were instructed to repay £1 per person while Charlie must pay over a thousand pounds.

Details of the Burglaries

The judge previously heard the gang arrived by boat in the United Kingdom on March 27, 2024 and employed a RV as their "base of operations", which they stationed at a service area and Durham service rest stops while utilizing another car to scout out targets and execute thefts.

On 31 March they took over one million pounds of items including designer clothing, purses, jewelry and a honor from a house on Clayton Road in Jesmond, while the owners were on holiday.

The next evening, the crew broke into a house on a gated cul-de-sac in Whitburn, and took designer handbags, valuables and shoes valued at over one hundred thousand pounds.

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

The group, who were described by prosecutors as professional itinerant burglars, wore gloves and masks, turned their phones on silent as they neared their targets and strapped a license plate, which had been taken from a garage in a town, on to their car with rubber straps.

They were apprehended in the Birmingham area on 13 April.

Court Proceedings and Rulings

Valentino Nikolov had denied the burglary plot but was convicted by the court, while his family members had all submitted guilty pleas to the same charge.

At the proceeds of crime hearing, prosecutor the prosecution said every one of the burglars had profited from their offenses to the amount of £1,266,285.93, which was based on what the affected parties said they had lost.

But Charlie Jovanovic was the sole individual found to have any funds that could be "recovered", namely £1,135.50 which had already been seized by authorities, the judge heard, with two weeks to be served in prison if he defaulted.

The remaining members had no money or assets so were ordered to make a nominal fee 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 driving around in Italy in a fast car or possessing a property", prosecutors could initiate new proceedings to "satisfy the amount due".