Alexander Isak Robbers Instructed to Pay Only £1 Each from £1.2 Million Thefts
Individuals of an Italian clan of thieves who took over £1.2m valued of items, among them from ex- Newcastle United forward Alexander Isak, have been mandated to return just £1 per person.
Brothers Valentino and Giacomo, their female sibling Jela and her son Charlie Jovanovic travelled to the northeastern of the UK to burgle three houses in spring 2024.
The foursome were jailed for between a decade or less in May 2025.
At a criminal assets proceeding at the court, Jela and the Nikolov brothers were instructed to pay back £1 per person while Charlie Jovanovic must pay over a thousand pounds.
Details of the Break-ins
The judge previously heard the gang arrived by ferry in the UK on 27 March 2024 and employed a campervan as their "headquarters", which they stationed at Scotch Corner and Durham service stations while using another car to search for properties and execute burglaries.
On 31 March they stole more than £1m of goods such as designer clothing, purses, jewelry and a CBE medal from a residence on Clayton Road in Jesmond, while the owners were away.
The next evening, the gang entered a house on a gated cul-de-sac in Whitburn, South Tyneside, and stole luxury bags, valuables and footwear worth more than one hundred thousand pounds.
After scouting out the football club's facility for two days, they then acted at the home of Swedish player Alexander Isak in Darras Hall, Ponteland on April 4, stealing £10,000 in money, sixty-eight thousand pounds worth of jewellery and the player's one hundred twenty thousand pound luxury car.
The gang, who were portrayed by prosecutors as professional touring burglars, wore gloves and face coverings, turned their phones off as they approached their targets and attached a license plate, which had been stolen from a garage in a town, on to their vehicle with elastic bands.
They were apprehended in the Birmingham area on 13 April.
Court Proceedings and Sentencing
Valentino had denied the burglary plot but was convicted by the court, while his three relations had all entered guilty pleas to the identical accusation.
At the criminal gains session, lawyer the prosecution said every one of the burglars had profited from their offenses to the value of £1,266,285.93, which was based on what the affected parties said they had had stolen.
But Charlie was the sole individual deemed to have any funds that could be "realised", namely over a thousand pounds which had previously been confiscated by police, the court was informed, with 14 days to be spent in jail if he failed to pay.
The other three had no assets or property so were directed to pay a nominal fee of £1 each, with seven days in prison the result if the money was not paid.
Judge Spragg said if they were found with assets in the coming years, "for example operating Italy in a fast car or owning a home", the prosecution could seek new proceedings to "satisfy the amount due".