🔗 Share this article Alexander Isak Burglars Instructed to Repay Only £1 Per Person from £1.2m Thefts Giacomo Nikolov confessed to their involvement in the crimes Members of an Italy-based clan of thieves who stole over £1.2 million worth of items, among them from ex- Newcastle United striker Isak, have been ordered to pay back just £1 per person. Brothers Valentino and Giacomo Nikolov, their sister Jela Jovanovic and her son Charlie Jovanovic travelled to the north-east of England to burgle multiple homes in spring 2024. The foursome were imprisoned for between a decade or less in 2025. At a proceeds of crime proceeding at Newcastle Crown Court, Jela and the brothers Nikolov were instructed to repay £1 each while Charlie must pay £1,135. Details of the Burglaries The court was told the gang came by boat in the United Kingdom on 27 March 2024 and used a campervan as their "base of operations", which they parked at Scotch Corner and Durham service service stations while utilizing another car to search for properties and carry out thefts. On 31 March they took over £1m of goods such as designer clothing, purses, jewellery and a CBE medal from a house on a street in Jesmond, while the owners were on holiday. Valentino Nikolov was the sole member of the group to deny the charge but was convicted by jurors The next evening, the crew broke into a house on a private road in Whitburn, South Tyneside, and took luxury bags, valuables and shoes worth more than £100,000. Following surveillance of Newcastle United's training ground for two days, they then acted at the residence of Sweden player Mr Isak in Darras Hall, Ponteland on 4 April, stealing £10,000 in money, sixty-eight thousand pounds valued of jewellery and the striker's £120,000 Audi RS6. The gang, who were portrayed by the prosecution as professional itinerant thieves, wore gloves and masks, switched their mobile devices on silent as they approached their targets and attached a number plate, which had been stolen from a garage in a town, on to their car with rubber straps. They were arrested in the Birmingham on 13 April. Thieves stole money and jewellery valued at eighty thousand pounds and an car from footballer Isak's home Legal Proceedings and Sentencing Valentino Nikolov had pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to burglary but was found guilty by jurors, while his three relations had all submitted guilty pleas to the same charge. At the proceeds of crime session, prosecutor Daniel Cordey said every one of the burglars had profited from their crimes to the value of over £1.2 million, which was determined by what the affected parties said they had lost. But Charlie Jovanovic was the sole individual deemed to have any money 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 prison if he defaulted. The other three had no assets or assets so were directed to pay a nominal fee of £1 per person, with seven days in incarceration the consequence if the money was not paid. The judge Spragg said if they were discovered with assets in the future, "for example driving around Italy in a sports car or owning a property", the prosecution could initiate further action to "satisfy the amount outstanding".