🔗 Share this article

Individuals of an Italian family of thieves who took more than £1.2m worth of items, including from former NUFC striker Alexander Isak, have been ordered to return only £1 each.

Siblings Valentino Nikolov and Giacomo, their sister Jela Jovanovic and her child Charlie Jovanovic travelled to the northeastern of the UK to burgle three houses in April 2024.

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

At a criminal assets hearing at the court, Jela and the Nikolov brothers were ordered to repay £1 per person while Charlie must hand over £1,135.

Details of the Break-ins

The court was told the group came by boat in the United Kingdom on March 27, 2024 and used a RV as their "headquarters", which they parked at Scotch Corner and Durham service stations while utilizing another car to search for targets and carry out burglaries.

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

The following night, the crew broke into a home on a gated cul-de-sac in Whitburn, South Tyneside, and stole designer handbags, jewellery and shoes worth 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 Swedish striker Mr Isak in Darras Hall, Ponteland on April 4, taking ten thousand pounds in money, £68,000 worth of jewellery and the striker's £120,000 luxury car.

The gang, who were described by prosecutors as experienced itinerant thieves, wore hand coverings and face coverings, switched their mobile devices off as they neared their targets and attached a number plate, which had been taken from a garage in a town, on to their car with rubber straps.

They were arrested in the Birmingham area on 13 April.

Legal Proceedings and Sentencing

Valentino Nikolov had denied conspiracy to burglary but was convicted by jurors, while his family members had all submitted admissions to the identical accusation.

At the proceeds of crime hearing, prosecutor Daniel Cordey said each of the burglars had benefited from their crimes to the value of over £1.2 million, which was determined by what the affected parties said they had had stolen.

But Charlie was the only one found to have any funds that could be "realised", specifically over a thousand pounds which had already been seized by authorities, the judge heard, with 14 days to be served in jail if he defaulted.

The remaining members had no assets or assets so were directed to pay a nominal fee of £1 per person, with seven days in incarceration the result if the sum was not submitted.

Judge Spragg said if they were discovered with assets in the future, "for example operating in Italy in a sports car or owning a property", the prosecution could seek further action to "satisfy the sum outstanding".