Alexander Isak Burglars Instructed to Pay Only £1 Per Person from £1.2 Million Heists

Burglary suspects
Giacomo Nikolov confessed to participating in the burglaries

Individuals of an Italy-based clan of thieves who took over £1.2 million valued of goods, among them from ex- Newcastle United striker Isak, have been ordered to return only £1 per person.

Brothers Valentino Nikolov and Giacomo Nikolov, their female sibling Jela and her son Charlie Jovanovic travelled to the northeastern of the UK to burgle multiple homes in spring 2024.

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

At a criminal assets hearing at Newcastle Crown Court, Jela and the Nikolov brothers were instructed to pay back £1 per person while Charlie must pay £1,135.

Particulars of the Break-ins

The court previously heard the group came by boat in the United Kingdom on 27 March 2024 and employed a RV as their "base of operations", which they parked at a service area and Durham rest stops while utilizing another car to search for properties and carry out burglaries.

On 31 March they stole more than £1m of goods such as designer clothing, handbags, jewelry and a CBE medal from a residence on Clayton Road in Jesmond, Newcastle, while the owners were on holiday.

Valentino Nikolov
Valentino was the sole member of the group to contest the charge but was convicted by jurors

The following night, the gang broke into a house on a gated cul-de-sac in Whitburn, South Tyneside, and took luxury bags, valuables and shoes valued at over one hundred thousand pounds.

Following surveillance of the football club's facility for two days, they then struck at the home of Sweden player Mr Isak in Darras Hall on April 4, taking ten thousand pounds in cash, sixty-eight thousand pounds worth of jewellery and the striker's £120,000 luxury car.

The group, who were portrayed by the prosecution as experienced itinerant thieves, wore hand coverings and masks, switched their phones off as they approached their objectives and attached a license plate, which had been taken from a auto shop in Chester-le-Street, on to their car with elastic bands.

They were apprehended in the Birmingham on 13 April.

Alexander Isak's home
Thieves took money and jewelry worth £80,000 and an Audi from footballer Isak's property

Court Proceedings and Sentencing

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

At the criminal gains session, lawyer the prosecution said each of the defendants had profited 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 was the only one found 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 two weeks to be spent in prison 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 one week in incarceration the consequence if the money was not submitted.

The judge Robert Spragg said if they were found with assets in the coming years, "such as operating Italy in a fast car or owning a property", the prosecution could seek further action to "satisfy the amount outstanding".

Lee Alvarez
Lee Alvarez

A digital strategist with over 8 years of experience, specializing in SEO optimization and content marketing for tech startups.