The parents of a student who was stabbed to death by a knife-obsessed Sikh man have condemned police for the ‘inhumane’ way their son was treated as he lay dying.
Vickrum Digwa, 23, stabbed stranger Henry Nowak, 18, six times with an eight-inch ceremonial dagger he had been carrying in Southampton city centre last December.
He did not know his teenage victim, but told a ‘wicked lie’ about him to the first officers on the scene, claiming Mr Nowak shouted racist abuse, punched him and knocked off his turban.
The injured student was then arrested as he lay covered in his own blood – before dying ‘alone, humiliated and handcuffed’ in police custody, prosecutor Nicholas Lobbenberg KC told Southampton Crown Court.
Mr Nowak’s family today slammed police for letting him die without ‘dignity’ after Digwa was jailed for life.
The victim’s father Mark Nowak said ‘justice alone is not enough’, adding that knife crime is a ‘national emergency’. He said the difference between how his son was treated, compared to Digwa, was ‘unbearable’.
‘Let me be absolutely clear – we hold Vickrum Digwa solely and 100 per cent responsible for the brutal murder of our son,’ the father said.
‘But Henry should not have died on the streets of Southampton in police custody. The way he was treated was inhumane and degrading.
Mark Nowak, Henry Nowak’s father, delivers a family statement outside Southampton Crown Court today
Lucy Ross, Henry’s mother, looks emotional outside court after her son’s killer’s sentencing
Vickrum Digwa, 23, was found guilty of murdering student Henry Nowak, 18, with an eight-inch ceremonial blade
Mr Nowak was a finance student at the University of Southampton and was described as ‘kind and talented’ by his family
‘His murderer, however, was afforded decency. He was believed. He was not handcuffed when arrested. He was not handcuffed when transported to the police station. As far as we understand, he was never handcuffed at all.
‘And, as Vickrum Digwa himself told the court, while under arrest for Henry’s murder, police even took him to the kitchen so he could choose his food. The contrast is unbearable.’
As family members wept outside court, Mr Nowak addressed his son, saying: ‘I want Henry to know wherever he is we are so proud of him and we love him beyond words.’
The father called for a ‘full, fearless and transparent’ investigation into the police handling of his son’s murder.
MPs reacted with fury following Digwa’s conviction for murder last week, questioning how the killer was so easily able to dupe officers into arresting his dying victim – a blunder described as a ‘shocking example of two-tier policing’.
Digwa was today jailed for life with a minimum term of 21 years, after a jury found him guilty of ‘aggressively pursuing’ Mr Nowak and stabbing him six times – including a chest wound 8cm deep.
Passing sentence, Judge William Mousley KC told the defendant that being able to wear a knife in public was a ‘privilege’ that came with a ‘huge responsibility’, adding it was ‘fundamental principle’ of Sikhism that the knife was ‘never to be carried for an offensive purpose’.
Continuing his remarks to the defendant, he said of Mr Nowak: ‘I am sure that Henry said nothing racist.
Mr Nowak pictured with his father Mark, who today blasted police for how his son was treated in his final moments
Relatives cry as Henry’s father gives a statement following the sentencing of his son’s killer
Following the sentencing hearing, the Nowak family released new photos of Henry as a child
Mr Nowak’s father Mark said: ‘Henry should not have died on the streets of Southampton in police custody. The way he was treated was inhumane and degrading’
‘You are the only person to make that claim and it is completely at odds with his previous character.
‘You have brought shame upon your family and your religion.
‘Your actions have stirred up racial tension in Southampton and across the country which have made many Sikhs worried about their safety.’
Prosecutor Mr Lobbenberg earlier told the sentencing hearing: ‘Henry Nowak dying alone, humiliated and handcuffed was a direct consequence of Vickrum Digwa’s dishonesty.
‘Vickrum Digwa chose on two occasions to make videos, first of Henry fleeing and then of Henry dying with close-ups of his face. The Crown says that is both intrusive and humiliating.
‘His defence describing Henry as a violent drunk racist aggressor compounds the grief of the family.’
The court heard that the Nihang Sikh slept in a bedroom with an ‘arsenal of weapons’ that he and his brother shared.
Digwa had a fascination with antique Sikh weaponry and he even described the murder weapon in ‘loving terms’ when he was questioned about it.
Hampshire Police was last week forced to apologise to Mr Nowak’s family for arresting the fatally injured teenager.
Deputy Chief Constable Robert France told the Daily Mail: ‘I’m sorry that he was handcuffed and arrested.’
There are calls for the force to release bodycam footage of the arrest, while the Independent Office for Police Conduct is looking into how the officers acted.
The case has caused international outrage, with tech billionaire Elon Musk offering to fund a private prosecution against the police. It also raises questions about whether anti-racism training may be having a catastrophic impact on officers’ judgment.
The trial heard Mr Nowak was in his first term at the University of Southampton when he went for a night out in the city on December 3. The teenager headed home at around 11pm.
Jurors were told he was speaking to friends on Snapchat when he came across Digwa, who was ‘carrying an extremely large knife in a sheath openly displayed over his clothing’.
A video of the two men talking was found on Mr Nowak’s phone, which was discovered in his killer’s pocket.
In the clip, Mr Nowak can be heard saying: ‘You’re a bad man, say you’re a bad man, go on.’
Digwa replied: ‘I am a bad man.’ The footage then cut off.
After the fatal blows were dealt, Digwa ‘aggressively pursued’ and filmed his victim as he tried to escape. His brother, Gurpreet, then arrived and called 999, claiming his sibling had been ‘attacked racially’.
Officers arrived soon after, at which point Digwa used his ‘trump card’ – accusing Mr Nowak of racism.
This was a ‘wicked lie about a dying man’, Mr Lobbenberg told the jury.
Last week, the Daily Mail revealed that Digwa’s obsession with weapons was obvious for several years before the fatal attack, with a video from 2023 showing him putting on a demonstration with ceremonial knives at a Sikh event.
Digwa’s obsession with weapons was obvious for several years before the fatal attack, with a video obtained by the Daily Mail showing him putting on a demonstration with ceremonial knives at a Sikh event (Digwa pictured in white)
In the 30-second clip, Digwa can be seen performing a ‘Gatka’ with his older brother Gurpreet (pictured in blue)
Sources in the local Sikh community said Digwa and his brother were briefly Gatka teachers, but they had abruptly cut ties with him over concerns they had about his behaviour
In the 30-second clip, Digwa can be seen performing a ‘Gatka’ with his older brother Gurpreet.
A Gatka is a Sikh weapons demonstration and both Digwa and his brother were described as ‘teachers’ of Gatka.
Sources in the local Sikh community said Digwa and his brother were briefly Gatka teachers, but they had abruptly cut ties with him over concerns they had about his behaviour.
The video, filmed in May 2023, shows them sparring with knives and small shields in front of a crowd of onlookers at an event in London.
Digwa can be seen picking up a knife and a shield from an array of weapons on the floor and using circular motions to jab the knife into his brother’s shield.
The two can be seen dressed in traditional Sikh clothing and turbans, jumping from side to side as they continue to hit each other’s shields.
The footage will raise questions about whether enough was done to stop Digwa before his obsession with knives turned deadly.
