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Members of an Italian family of burglars who took over £1.2m worth of items, among them from former Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak, have been ordered to pay back only £1 per person.

Siblings Valentino and Giacomo Nikolov, their female sibling Jela and her child Charlie journeyed to the north-east of England to burgle multiple homes in April 2024.

The foursome were imprisoned for between a decade or less in 2025.

At a criminal assets proceeding at Newcastle Crown Court, Jela and the Nikolov brothers were ordered to pay back £1 per person while Charlie Jovanovic must hand over over a thousand pounds.

Details of the Break-ins

The court was told the gang came by ferry in the United Kingdom on 27 March 2024 and employed a RV as their "base of operations", which they stationed at Scotch Corner and Durham service rest stops while utilizing a separate vehicle to search for properties and execute thefts.

On March 31 they took over £1m of items including high-end fashion, handbags, jewelry and a CBE medal from a residence on Clayton Road in Jesmond, while the residents were away.

The following night, the gang entered a house on a gated cul-de-sac in Whitburn, and took luxury bags, valuables and footwear valued at more than £100,000.

Following surveillance of Newcastle United's training ground for 48 hours, they then struck at the home of Sweden striker Alexander Isak in Darras Hall on 4 April, taking £10,000 in money, £68,000 valued of jewellery and the striker's one hundred twenty thousand pound luxury car.

The group, who were portrayed by the prosecution as professional itinerant burglars, used hand coverings and face coverings, switched their phones off as they neared 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 13 April.

Legal Proceedings and Sentencing

Valentino Nikolov had pleaded not guilty to the burglary plot but was found guilty by the court, while his family members had all entered admissions to the same charge.

At the criminal gains hearing, prosecutor Daniel Cordey said every one of the burglars had profited from their crimes to the amount of £1,266,285.93, which was determined by what the victims said they had lost.

But Charlie was the only one deemed to have any money that could be "recovered", specifically over a thousand pounds which had previously been confiscated by authorities, the court was informed, with 14 days to be spent in prison if he failed to pay.

The remaining members had no assets or property so were ordered to pay a token amount of £1 per person, with one week in prison the consequence if the sum was not submitted.

Judge Robert Spragg said if they were discovered with assets in the coming years, "such as operating Italy in a fast car or possessing a home", prosecutors could initiate further action to "recover the sum outstanding".