Isak Burglars Instructed to Repay Just £1 Each from £1.2m Thefts

Individuals of an Italian family of burglars who took more than £1.2m worth of items, including from former Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak, have been ordered to return just £1 per person.

Brothers Valentino and Giacomo, their female sibling Jela Jovanovic and her child Charlie Jovanovic journeyed to the northeastern of the UK to burgle multiple homes in April 2024.

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

At a proceeds of crime hearing 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 Burglaries

The judge was told the gang came by ferry in the United Kingdom on March 27, 2024 and used a RV as their "base of operations", which they parked at a service area and Durham service rest stops while utilizing another car to search for targets and carry out burglaries.

On 31 March they stole over one million pounds of items including designer clothing, purses, jewellery and a honor from a house on a street in Jesmond, while the residents were on holiday.

The following night, the crew entered a home on a private road in Whitburn, and took designer handbags, 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 acted at the residence of Sweden player Mr Isak in Darras Hall, Ponteland on 4 April, taking £10,000 in money, £68,000 valued of jewellery and the striker's £120,000 Audi RS6.

The gang, who were portrayed by the prosecution as professional touring burglars, wore gloves and face coverings, switched their mobile devices off as they neared their objectives and strapped a license plate, which had been stolen from a auto shop in a town, on to their vehicle with rubber straps.

They were arrested in the Birmingham area on April 13.

Legal Proceedings and Rulings

Valentino had denied the burglary plot but was convicted by jurors, while his three relations had all submitted admissions to the identical accusation.

At the criminal gains hearing, lawyer the prosecution said each of the defendants had benefited from their offenses to the amount of over £1.2 million, which was based on what the victims said they had had stolen.

But Charlie Jovanovic was the sole individual found to have any funds that could be "recovered", namely over a thousand pounds which had previously been confiscated by authorities, the judge was informed, with 14 days to be spent in prison if he defaulted.

The remaining members had no money or assets so were ordered to pay a token amount of £1 per person, with seven days in prison the consequence if the sum was not paid.

The judge Spragg said if they were discovered with assets in the future, "for example operating Italy in a fast car or owning a home", prosecutors could seek new proceedings to "satisfy the sum outstanding".