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Members of an Italian family of thieves who took more than £1.2m worth of goods, including from former NUFC forward Alexander Isak, have been ordered to pay back just £1 each.

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

The group of four were jailed for from six and 10 years in May 2025.

At a proceeds of crime proceeding at Newcastle Crown Court, Jela Jovanovic and the Nikolov brothers were instructed to repay £1 per person while Charlie Jovanovic must pay over a thousand pounds.

Particulars of the Burglaries

The court was told the gang came by boat in the UK on March 27, 2024 and used a campervan as their "base of operations", which they stationed at Scotch Corner and Durham service rest stops while using another car to scout out properties and execute burglaries.

On March 31 they took over £1m of items such as high-end fashion, handbags, jewellery and a CBE medal from a house on Clayton Road in Jesmond, Newcastle, while the residents were on holiday.

The next evening, the crew broke into a home on a private road in Whitburn, and took luxury bags, valuables and shoes valued at over one hundred thousand pounds.

After scouting out the football club's training ground for two days, they then struck at the home of Swedish player Mr 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 the prosecution as experienced touring thieves, used hand coverings and masks, turned their phones on silent as they approached their objectives and strapped a number plate, which had been taken from a auto shop in a town, on to their vehicle with rubber straps.

They were arrested in the Birmingham on April 13.

Court Proceedings and Rulings

Valentino Nikolov had pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to burglary but was found guilty by jurors, while his three relations had all entered guilty pleas to the identical accusation.

At the proceeds of crime hearing, lawyer the prosecution said every one of the burglars had profited from their crimes to the amount of £1,266,285.93, which was based on what the victims said they had had stolen.

But Charlie was the sole individual deemed to have any funds that could be "recovered", specifically over a thousand pounds which had previously been confiscated by authorities, the court was informed, with two weeks to be served in prison if he defaulted.

The other three had no assets or property so were ordered to make a nominal fee of £1 per person, with one week in prison the consequence if the sum was not submitted.

The judge Robert Spragg said if they were found with property in the coming years, "such as operating in Italy in a sports car or owning a property", the prosecution could initiate new proceedings to "recover the amount due".