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Members of an Italian family of thieves who took more than £1.2 million valued of items, including from ex- Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak, have been mandated to return only £1 each.

Brothers Valentino and Giacomo Nikolov, their female sibling Jela and her son Charlie Jovanovic journeyed to the north-east of the UK to burgle multiple homes in April 2024.

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

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

Particulars of the Break-ins

The judge previously heard the group arrived by boat in the UK on March 27, 2024 and used a campervan as their "base of operations", which they stationed at Scotch Corner and Durham rest stops while using a separate vehicle to search for properties and execute thefts.

On March 31 they took over £1m of goods such as high-end fashion, handbags, jewellery and a CBE medal from a residence on a street in Jesmond, while the residents were away.

The next evening, the gang entered a house on a private road in Whitburn, and stole luxury bags, jewellery and footwear valued at more than one hundred thousand pounds.

Following surveillance of Newcastle United's facility for two days, they then struck at the home of Swedish striker Mr Isak in Darras Hall on April 4, stealing £10,000 in money, sixty-eight thousand pounds worth of jewellery and the striker's one hundred twenty thousand pound luxury car.

The gang, who were described by the prosecution as professional itinerant burglars, wore hand coverings and face coverings, switched their phones off as they approached their targets and strapped a license plate, which had been taken from a garage in a town, on to their vehicle with elastic bands.

They were arrested in the Birmingham on 13 April.

Court Proceedings and Rulings

Valentino Nikolov had pleaded not guilty to the burglary plot but was found guilty by jurors, while his three relations had all submitted guilty pleas to the identical accusation.

At the proceeds of crime session, lawyer Daniel Cordey said every one of the defendants had benefited from their crimes to the value 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 authorities, the court heard, with 14 days to be served in jail if he defaulted.

The other three had no money or assets so were ordered to pay a nominal fee of £1 each, with one week in incarceration the consequence if the sum was not paid.

Judge Robert Spragg said if they were discovered with property in the future, "such as driving around in Italy in a sports car or possessing a property", the prosecution could initiate new proceedings to "recover the amount due".