Bodycam footage reveals that 18-year-old Southampton University student Henry Nowak told responding officers he could not breathe while lying on the ground in handcuffs after being stabbed. His assailant, 23-year-old Vickrum Digwa, had manipulated the situation by falsely telling police he was the victim of a racially motivated attack.
Digwa was sentenced to life imprisonment on Monday with a minimum term of 21 years for the murder, committed with a 21cm blade. The Nowak family described the police response as degrading, prompting an apology from the force and an ongoing investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). During the incident, footage shows Nowak pleading that he had been stabbed while officers expressed skepticism, with one officer remarking that he did not believe the student’s claims.
The Attorney General’s office is currently reviewing whether to appeal the sentence, citing its potential for being unduly lenient. Political leaders have responded to the case, with Sir Keir Starmer emphasizing the need to combat knife crime, while the Sikh community has clarified that the weapon used by Digwa did not qualify as a traditional religious kirpan. Digwa’s own family has expressed profound remorse and apologized for the harm caused to the Nowak family and the disrepute brought upon their community.
