Individuals of an Italian clan of burglars who took over £1.2 million valued of goods, including from ex- NUFC striker Alexander Isak, have been mandated to return only £1 per person.
Siblings Valentino Nikolov and Giacomo, their female sibling Jela Jovanovic and her child Charlie journeyed to the north-east of the UK to burgle multiple homes in spring 2024.
The foursome were jailed for from a decade or less in 2025.
At a criminal assets proceeding at the court, Jela Jovanovic and the Nikolov brothers were ordered to repay £1 per person while Charlie Jovanovic must pay £1,135.
Details of the Burglaries
The court was told the gang came by ferry in the UK on 27 March 2024 and employed a campervan as their "base of operations", which they stationed at Scotch Corner and Durham service rest stops while using another car to search for targets and carry out thefts.
On March 31 they stole more than one million pounds of items such as designer clothing, handbags, jewellery and a honor from a house on a street in Jesmond, Newcastle, while the residents were on holiday.
The following night, the gang broke into a house on a private road in Whitburn, and took designer handbags, jewellery and footwear valued at more than one hundred thousand pounds.
Following surveillance of Newcastle United's training ground for 48 hours, they then struck at the residence of Sweden player Alexander Isak in Darras Hall, Ponteland on 4 April, stealing ten thousand pounds in cash, sixty-eight thousand pounds worth of jewellery and the player's £120,000 Audi RS6.
The group, who were described by prosecutors as experienced touring burglars, wore gloves and masks, switched their phones off as they neared their objectives and strapped a license plate, which had been stolen from a auto shop in Chester-le-Street, on to their vehicle with elastic bands.
They were arrested in the Birmingham on April 13.
Legal Hearings and Rulings
Valentino had pleaded not guilty to the burglary plot but was convicted by the court, while his three relations had all submitted admissions to the same charge.
At the proceeds of crime session, lawyer Daniel Cordey said every one of the defendants had profited from their crimes to the value 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 "realised", namely over a thousand pounds which had previously been confiscated by authorities, the judge heard, with two weeks to be spent in prison if he failed to pay.
The other three had no money or assets so were ordered to make a token amount of £1 each, with seven days in prison the consequence if the sum was not paid.
The judge Spragg said if they were found with property in the future, "for example driving around in Italy in a sports car or owning a property", the prosecution could seek further action to "satisfy the amount outstanding".
