Alexander Isak Burglars Instructed to Repay Only £1 Each from £1.2 Million Thefts

Individuals of an Italy-based family of thieves who stole more than £1.2m valued of items, among them from former NUFC forward Isak, have been ordered to return just £1 per person.

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

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

At a proceeds of crime hearing at the court, Jela Jovanovic and the brothers Nikolov were ordered to pay back £1 per person while Charlie must pay over a thousand pounds.

Details of the Burglaries

The judge previously heard the group came by boat in the United Kingdom on March 27, 2024 and used a RV as their "base of operations", which they stationed at Scotch Corner and Durham service service stations while using another car to search for targets and execute thefts.

On 31 March they stole more than £1m of items including designer clothing, handbags, jewellery and a CBE medal from a house on Clayton Road in Jesmond, while the owners were on holiday.

The following night, the gang entered a house on a private road in Whitburn, South Tyneside, and took designer handbags, valuables and footwear valued at more than £100,000.

Following surveillance of the football club's training ground for 48 hours, they then acted at the residence of Swedish striker Alexander Isak in Darras Hall on 4 April, stealing ten thousand pounds in cash, £68,000 worth of jewellery and the striker's £120,000 luxury car.

The group, who were portrayed by prosecutors as professional itinerant burglars, used gloves and face coverings, turned their phones on silent as they neared their objectives and attached a license plate, which had been taken from a auto shop in a town, on to their vehicle with elastic bands.

They were arrested in the Birmingham on April 13.

Legal Hearings and Sentencing

Valentino Nikolov had denied conspiracy to burglary but was found guilty by the court, while his three relations had all submitted guilty pleas to the identical accusation.

At the proceeds of crime hearing, prosecutor Daniel Cordey said each of the burglars had profited from their crimes to the amount of £1,266,285.93, which was determined by what the affected parties said they had lost.

But Charlie was the sole individual deemed to have any money that could be "recovered", namely over a thousand pounds which had previously been confiscated by authorities, the court was informed, with 14 days to be spent in prison if he failed to pay.

The other three had no money or property so were ordered to make a nominal fee of £1 per person, with seven days in prison the result if the sum was not submitted.

The judge Spragg said if they were discovered with assets in the future, "for example operating in Italy in a sports car or owning a home", the prosecution could initiate further action to "satisfy the sum due".