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Individuals of an Italy-based family of thieves who stole more than £1.2m valued of goods, among them from former NUFC striker Alexander Isak, have been mandated to return just £1 each.

Siblings Valentino Nikolov and Giacomo, their female sibling Jela and her son Charlie travelled to the northeastern of England to burgle multiple homes in April 2024.

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

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

Details of the Break-ins

The court was told the gang arrived by ferry in the UK on 27 March 2024 and employed a RV as their "base of operations", which they stationed at a service area and Durham service stations while utilizing another car to search for targets and carry out burglaries.

On 31 March they stole over £1m of goods including designer clothing, purses, jewellery and a honor from a house on Clayton Road in Jesmond, while the owners were on holiday.

The following night, the crew entered a home on a private road in Whitburn, and took designer handbags, valuables and shoes valued at over £100,000.

Following surveillance of the football club's facility for 48 hours, they then acted at the residence of Swedish player Alexander Isak in Darras Hall on April 4, stealing ten thousand pounds in cash, sixty-eight thousand pounds valued of jewelry and the striker's £120,000 luxury car.

The group, who were described by prosecutors as professional touring burglars, wore gloves and face coverings, turned their mobile devices off as they approached their targets and strapped a license plate, which had been stolen from a auto shop in Chester-le-Street, on to their vehicle with rubber straps.

They were arrested in the Birmingham on April 13.

Legal Hearings and Sentencing

Valentino had pleaded not guilty to the burglary plot but was found guilty by jurors, while his three relations had all submitted admissions to the same charge.

At the criminal gains hearing, lawyer the prosecution said each of the burglars had profited from their offenses to the value of over £1.2 million, which was determined by what the victims said they had lost.

But Charlie Jovanovic was the only one deemed to have any money that could be "realised", specifically £1,135.50 which had already been seized by authorities, the judge heard, with two weeks to be served in jail if he defaulted.

The remaining members had no money or assets so were ordered to make a nominal fee of £1 per person, with one week in incarceration the result if the money was not submitted.

Judge Robert Spragg said if they were discovered with property in the future, "for example driving around Italy in a fast car or owning a property", the prosecution could initiate further action to "recover the sum due".