Burglar family jailed for striker Isak's home raid

A family of Italian burglars who stole luxury goods worth more than £1.2m from homes including that of Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak have been jailed.

Brothers Valentino and Giacomo Nikolov, their sister Jela Jovanoic and her son Charlie Jovanovic travelled to the region to raid three houses in April 2024, Newcastle Crown Court heard.

Prosecutor Daniel Cordey said the foursome, two of whom had been banned from Switzerland for thieving, were a professional gang of touring burglars.

Valentino, 32, who was found guilty of conspiracy to commit burglary, was jailed for 10 years while the others, who admitted their involvement, were imprisoned for between six and eight years each.

Mr Isak said the "attack" on his home had left him with a sense of unease.

The gang arrived in the UK on a ferry from Calais in the early hours of 27 March, the court heard, with the family travelling in a black Citroen C3 and a Ford campervan.

Their movements over the following days were tracked by SIM cards in their phones and the C3, as well as automatic number plate recognition cameras, Mr Cordey said.

They parked their "base of operations" campervan at Scotch Corner and Durham service stations while they used the C3 to scout out their targets and carry out the burglaries, the court heard.

Jela, 43, who was born in Zagreb, Croatia, and had previous convictions for fraud and theft in Belgium from 2011, was the gang's driver while her son and brothers ransacked the homes, Mr Cordey said.

They first targeted a home on Clayton Road in Jesmond, Newcastle, while the owners were on holiday, the court heard.

At about 20:45 BST on 31 March, the men broke in through a first-floor balcony door and stole a safe, high value watches, designer clothing, handbags, a CBE medal and gold coins, Mr Cordey said.

The total value of the stolen goods exceeded £1m, the prosecutor said, with the vast majority of it unrecovered.

The following night, the gang broke into a home on a gated cul-de-sac in Whitburn, South Tyneside, and stole designer handbags, jewellery and shoes worth more than £100,000, the court heard.

They then spent two days near Newcastle United's training ground, monitoring the movements of staff and players, before targeting Mr Isak's home in Ponteland, the court heard.

On the evening of 4 April, the burglars smashed their way into the house on Middle Drive in Darrass Hall while the Swedish striker was visiting a teammate, the court heard.

They took an empty safe, which had been left by a previous owner, up to £10,000 in cash and "bespoke" jewellery worth £68,000, Mr Cordey said.

They also stole the footballer's car keys so they could use his Audi RS6 as a battering ram to force open his gates, with the vehicle, worth £120,000, later found abandoned nearby, the court heard.

Mr Cordey said the gang wore gloves and masks, switched their phones off as they neared their targets and strapped a number plate, which had been stolen from a garage in Chester-le-Street, on to their car with elastic bands.

They escaped with their loot to the Walsall and Birmingham area, where their car was stopped and they were arrested on 13 April, the court heard.

Giacomo, 28, who was born in Napoli and had convictions for theft in Italy, was wearing a Rolex watch stolen from the home in Jesmond, the court heard.

Valentino, who was born in Milan and had links to an address in Birmingham, and his 22-year-old nephew Charlie, born in Brescia, had both been jailed in Switzerland for carrying out a burglary on Christmas Eve 2022, the court heard, with the pair then expelled from the country for five and seven years respectively.

In a statement read to the court, Mr Isak said the "attack" on his home had left him with a "sense of unease" every time he left and returned to the house.

None of the goods taken from his home were recovered, the court heard, apart from the safe which was found heavily damaged in the Birmingham area.

Newcastle United's player liaison officer Glenn Patterson said he had always been "proud" to tell new and prospective recruits that the area was safe but the burglary of Mr Isak's home was one of several against players in recent times.

He said the club had had to invest heavily in security systems and patrols, with players fearing for the safety of their homes and families during matches and being instructed to "moderate" what they posted on social media.

"I'm not trying to be alarmist or over-reactive but these crimes have had an impact on the club which cannot be overstated," Mr Patterson said, adding it affected player recruitment and retention.

The victim of the Jesmond burglary said she and her husband had worked "extremely hard" for everything they owned and they had been devastated by the burglary.

She said much of the jewellery had been of great sentimental value and was irreplaceable, while her CBE medal had no worth to the burglars but was intended by her to become a family heirloom.

"The thieves have not only stolen our belongings but, just as importantly, they have stolen our privacy and security," she said.

The woman whose Whitburn home was targeted said she and her young children had lived in fear ever since.

"The peace, safety and security taken from us is unacceptable, let alone the stress and heartbreak caused," she said.

All four burglars apologised for the impact of their actions and said they wanted to be deported back to Italy to be with their families, the court heard.

Judge Robert Spragg said it was a highly sophisticated and planned "family affair" by a professional group of criminals.

Giacomo was jailed for eight years, Jela for seven years and two months and Charlie for six years and nine months.

He said deportation was automatic for foreign nationals jailed for more than a year.

Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Send your story ideas here.