Alexander Isak Robbers Ordered to Repay Just £1 Each from £1.2m Heists

Burglary suspects
Jela Jovanovic admitted participating in the crimes

Individuals of an Italian clan of burglars who took more than £1.2m worth of goods, among them from former NUFC forward Alexander Isak, have been mandated to pay back only £1 each.

Siblings Valentino and Giacomo, their sister Jela and her child Charlie journeyed to the northeastern of England to raid multiple homes in spring 2024.

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

At a proceeds of crime hearing at Newcastle Crown Court, Jela and the brothers Nikolov were ordered to pay back £1 per person while Charlie Jovanovic must pay over a thousand pounds.

Particulars of the Break-ins

The court previously heard the group arrived by boat in the United Kingdom on March 27, 2024 and used a campervan as their "base of operations", which they stationed at a service area and Durham service rest stops while using a separate vehicle to search for properties and carry out burglaries.

On March 31 they stole more than one million pounds of goods such as high-end fashion, purses, jewellery and a honor from a residence on a street in Jesmond, while the owners were on holiday.

Valentino Nikolov
Valentino was the sole member of the foursome to contest burglary but was convicted by the jury

The following night, the gang entered a home on a private road in Whitburn, and took designer handbags, jewellery and shoes worth more than one hundred thousand pounds.

Following surveillance of Newcastle United's facility for 48 hours, they then acted at the home of Sweden player Mr Isak in Darras Hall on April 4, stealing ten thousand pounds in money, sixty-eight thousand pounds valued of jewellery and the striker's £120,000 Audi RS6.

The group, who were described by the prosecution as professional touring thieves, used gloves and masks, turned their mobile devices off as they approached their objectives and attached a number plate, which had been stolen from a auto shop in Chester-le-Street, on to their vehicle with rubber straps.

They were apprehended in the Birmingham area on April 13.

Alexander Isak's home
Thieves stole money and jewellery valued at £80,000 and an car from then-Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak's home

Legal Proceedings and Sentencing

Valentino had pleaded not guilty to the burglary plot but was convicted by jurors, while his family members had all entered guilty pleas to the same charge.

At the proceeds of crime hearing, lawyer the prosecution said each of the defendants had profited 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 deemed to have any funds that could be "recovered", namely over a thousand pounds which had already been seized 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 make a nominal fee of £1 per person, with seven days in incarceration the consequence if the money was not submitted.

Judge Spragg said if they were found with assets in the coming years, "such as driving around Italy in a sports car or possessing a home", prosecutors could initiate further action to "satisfy the amount outstanding".

Johnny Olson
Johnny Olson

A senior software architect with over 15 years of experience in cloud computing and agile methodologies, passionate about mentoring developers.