Alexander Isak Burglars Ordered to Repay Just £1 Each from £1.2m Heists
Members of an Italy-based family of burglars who took over £1.2 million valued of goods, including from ex- NUFC forward Isak, have been mandated to return only £1 per person.
Siblings Valentino and Giacomo Nikolov, their female sibling Jela Jovanovic and her child Charlie travelled to the northeastern of the UK to burgle three houses 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 brothers Nikolov were instructed to pay back £1 each while Charlie must hand over £1,135.
Particulars of the Break-ins
The court previously heard the gang arrived by ferry in the United Kingdom on March 27, 2024 and employed a RV as their "base of operations", which they stationed at Scotch Corner and Durham service stations while utilizing another car to scout out targets and execute burglaries.
On 31 March they stole over £1m of goods such as designer clothing, purses, jewellery and a honor from a house on a street in Jesmond, Newcastle, while the owners were away.
The next evening, the gang entered a home on a private road in Whitburn, South Tyneside, and took designer handbags, jewellery and footwear valued at more than £100,000.
After scouting out Newcastle United's facility for two days, they then acted at the residence of Swedish striker Alexander Isak in Darras Hall, Ponteland on April 4, taking £10,000 in money, sixty-eight thousand pounds worth of jewellery and the striker's £120,000 luxury car.
The group, who were portrayed by the prosecution as experienced touring burglars, wore hand coverings and face coverings, turned their mobile devices off as they approached their targets and strapped a license plate, which had been taken from a garage in Chester-le-Street, on to their vehicle with rubber straps.
They were apprehended in the Birmingham area on 13 April.
Legal Proceedings and Rulings
Valentino had denied conspiracy to burglary but was found guilty by jurors, while his three relations had all submitted admissions to the same charge.
At the criminal gains hearing, lawyer Daniel Cordey said every one of the burglars had benefited 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 Jovanovic was the only one found to have any money that could be "realised", namely £1,135.50 which had already been seized by police, the court heard, with two weeks to be spent in prison if he defaulted.
The other three had no assets or assets so were ordered to make a token amount of £1 each, with one week in incarceration the result if the sum was not paid.
Judge Spragg said if they were found with property in the future, "for example operating in Italy in a sports car or possessing a property", the prosecution could seek new proceedings to "satisfy the amount due".