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Members of an Italian clan of thieves who took over £1.2m valued of goods, including from former Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak, have been mandated to pay back just £1 each.

Brothers Valentino and Giacomo, their sister Jela and her child Charlie travelled to the north-east of England to burgle multiple homes in spring 2024.

The foursome were jailed for from six and 10 years in May 2025.

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

Details of the Burglaries

The court previously heard the gang came by boat in the UK on 27 March 2024 and used a campervan as their "headquarters", which they parked at a service area and Durham service service stations while utilizing a separate vehicle to search for properties and execute burglaries.

On 31 March they took over £1m of items including designer clothing, handbags, jewellery and a CBE medal from a house on Clayton Road in Jesmond, Newcastle, while the owners were away.

The next evening, the gang broke into a house on a gated cul-de-sac in Whitburn, and stole luxury bags, jewellery and shoes valued at more than 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, taking £10,000 in money, sixty-eight thousand pounds worth of jewellery and the player's one hundred twenty thousand pound luxury car.

The group, who were described by prosecutors as experienced itinerant thieves, used hand coverings and masks, switched their mobile devices off as they approached their objectives and strapped a number plate, which had been stolen from a garage in Chester-le-Street, on to their vehicle with elastic bands.

They were apprehended in the Birmingham area on 13 April.

Court Hearings and Sentencing

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

At the proceeds of crime session, prosecutor the prosecution said each of the defendants had benefited from their offenses 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 sole individual deemed to have any funds that could be "recovered", namely £1,135.50 which had previously been confiscated by police, the judge heard, with 14 days to be spent in prison if he failed to pay.

The other three had no assets or assets so were directed to pay a token amount of £1 each, with one week in incarceration the consequence if the money was not paid.

The judge Robert Spragg said if they were found with assets in the future, "such as operating in Italy in a fast car or owning a property", prosecutors could seek further action to "recover the sum due".