Alexander Isak Robbers Ordered to Pay Only £1 Per Person from £1.2m Heists

Burglary suspects
Charlie Jovanovic admitted participating in the burglaries

Members of an Italy-based clan of thieves who took over £1.2 million valued of goods, including from ex- Newcastle United forward Alexander Isak, have been ordered to return only £1 per person.

Siblings Valentino and Giacomo, their female sibling Jela and her son Charlie Jovanovic journeyed to the north-east of England to raid three houses in spring 2024.

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

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

Particulars of the Burglaries

The court was told the gang arrived by ferry in the UK on March 27, 2024 and employed a campervan as their "base of operations", which they stationed at Scotch Corner and Durham service service stations while using another car to search for properties and carry out burglaries.

On March 31 they took over one million pounds of goods such as high-end fashion, handbags, jewelry and a honor from a residence on a street in Jesmond, Newcastle, while the residents were on holiday.

Valentino Nikolov
Valentino Nikolov was the only one of the group to contest burglary but was found guilty by the jury

The following night, the gang broke into a house on a gated cul-de-sac in Whitburn, South Tyneside, and stole luxury bags, valuables and shoes worth over £100,000.

After scouting out Newcastle United's training ground for 48 hours, they then acted at the residence of Sweden striker Mr Isak in Darras Hall on 4 April, stealing £10,000 in cash, £68,000 valued of jewellery and the player's one hundred twenty thousand pound luxury car.

The group, who were portrayed by prosecutors as experienced itinerant thieves, used gloves and masks, switched their mobile devices off as they neared their objectives and strapped a number plate, which had been stolen from a auto shop in a town, on to their car with elastic bands.

They were arrested in the Birmingham area on April 13.

Alexander Isak's home
Burglars took cash and jewelry valued at eighty thousand pounds and an Audi from then-Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak's home

Legal Hearings and Rulings

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

At the criminal gains hearing, prosecutor the prosecution said each of the burglars 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 found to have any funds that could be "recovered", namely over a thousand pounds which had previously been confiscated by police, the judge heard, with 14 days to be spent in jail if he failed to pay.

The remaining members had no money or assets so were directed to pay a nominal fee of £1 each, with one week in incarceration the consequence if the sum was not submitted.

Judge Spragg said if they were discovered with property in the future, "for example operating in Italy in a sports car or owning a home", prosecutors could initiate new proceedings to "recover the sum due".

Julie Bryant
Julie Bryant

A senior software engineer with over a decade of experience in full-stack development and a passion for sharing knowledge through technical writing.