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Members of an Italian family of thieves who stole more than £1.2m worth of items, including from ex- NUFC striker Isak, have been ordered to return just £1 each.

Brothers Valentino Nikolov and Giacomo, their sister Jela Jovanovic and her son Charlie travelled to the northeastern of England to raid multiple homes in April 2024.

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

At a proceeds of crime hearing at the court, Jela and the Nikolov brothers were ordered to pay back £1 each while Charlie Jovanovic must pay £1,135.

Details of the Burglaries

The judge was told the group arrived by boat in the United Kingdom on 27 March 2024 and employed a RV as their "headquarters", which they parked at a service area and Durham service stations while utilizing another car to scout out properties and carry out burglaries.

On 31 March they took more than one million pounds of items including high-end fashion, purses, jewelry and a CBE medal from a house on a street in Jesmond, while the residents were away.

The following night, the gang broke into a home on a private road in Whitburn, South Tyneside, and took designer handbags, valuables and shoes worth over one hundred thousand pounds.

Following surveillance of the football club's training ground for 48 hours, they then struck at the home of Sweden striker Mr Isak in Darras Hall, Ponteland on 4 April, stealing £10,000 in money, sixty-eight thousand pounds valued of jewelry and the player's one hundred twenty thousand pound Audi RS6.

The group, who were portrayed by the prosecution as professional itinerant thieves, wore hand coverings and masks, switched their mobile devices off as they approached their objectives and strapped a number plate, which had been taken from a garage in Chester-le-Street, on to their car with elastic bands.

They were apprehended in the Birmingham area on April 13.

Legal Hearings and Sentencing

Valentino had denied the burglary plot but was found guilty by the court, while his three relations had all submitted guilty pleas to the same charge.

At the criminal gains hearing, prosecutor Daniel Cordey said every one of the burglars had benefited from their crimes to the value of over £1.2 million, which was determined by what the victims said they had had stolen.

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

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

Judge Robert Spragg said if they were discovered with assets in the coming years, "such as operating Italy in a sports car or possessing a home", prosecutors could initiate new proceedings to "recover the amount due".