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Individuals of an Italy-based family of burglars who stole over £1.2m valued of goods, including from former NUFC striker Isak, have been ordered to return just £1 per person.

Brothers Valentino Nikolov and Giacomo Nikolov, their sister Jela Jovanovic and her child Charlie travelled to the north-east of England to burgle three houses in spring 2024.

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

At a criminal assets proceeding at the court, Jela Jovanovic and the brothers Nikolov were instructed to pay back £1 per person while Charlie must pay over a thousand pounds.

Details of the Break-ins

The court previously heard the gang came by boat in the UK on March 27, 2024 and employed a campervan as their "headquarters", which they stationed at Scotch Corner and Durham service service stations while utilizing another car to search for properties and execute thefts.

On 31 March they took over one million pounds of goods including designer clothing, purses, jewelry and a CBE medal from a residence on Clayton Road in Jesmond, Newcastle, while the residents were on holiday.

The following night, the crew entered a house on a private road in Whitburn, South Tyneside, and took designer handbags, jewellery and shoes 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 home of Sweden player Alexander Isak in Darras Hall, Ponteland on April 4, stealing ten thousand pounds in cash, £68,000 worth of jewelry and the striker's one hundred twenty thousand pound luxury car.

The group, who were described by the prosecution as experienced itinerant burglars, wore gloves and face coverings, turned their phones on silent as they neared their targets and strapped a number plate, which had been stolen from a garage in Chester-le-Street, on to their car with rubber straps.

They were apprehended in the Birmingham area on 13 April.

Legal Hearings and Sentencing

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

At the criminal gains hearing, prosecutor Daniel Cordey said every one of the burglars had profited from their offenses to the value of £1,266,285.93, which was based on what the victims said they had had stolen.

But Charlie Jovanovic was the sole individual found to have any money that could be "realised", namely £1,135.50 which had already been seized by police, the judge was informed, with 14 days to be spent in jail if he defaulted.

The remaining members had no assets or property so were ordered to pay a nominal fee 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 future, "for example driving around in Italy in a sports car or owning a property", prosecutors could initiate new proceedings to "satisfy the amount due".