The family of 18-year-old Henry Nowak has broken its silence following the sentencing of the man responsible for the fatal street attack that claimed the university student's life.
Henry was fatally injured on a Southampton street in December 2025 after 23-year-old Vickrum Diwag allegedly attacked him with a ceremonial blade. However, it was the police response that sparked a fierce debate online.
Highlights
- Henry Nowak’s family broke their silence after his attacker received a life sentence, calling the teenager’s treatment by police “inhumane and degrading.”
- Chilling bodycam footage sparked widespread outrage after reportedly showing officers handcuffing the wounded 18-year-old.
- The case ignited violent protests, with demonstrators clashing with police while investigators continue examining the officers’ actions.
Horrifying bodycam footage released in the wake of the case reportedly shows officers handcuffing and arresting the wounded teenager as he fought for his life, while his attacker received medical attention.
One outraged user wrote, “At the very least the police officers should be charged with manslaughter and gross negligence. There will be no justice until those police officers are prosecuted.”
Henry Nowak’s family called the responding officers' decision to arrest and handcuff the victim “inhumane and degrading”
Image credits: Hampshire Police
On December 3, 2025, Henry Nowak, a British-Polish accountancy and finance student, was walking back to his accommodation after a night out with his university football teammates when he encountered Vickrum Digwa.
Allegedly, after a brief verbal exchange in which Digwa reportedly told Nowak, “I am a bad man,” he attacked him five times with a 21cm (8-inch) ceremonial blade.
While Henry lay bleeding, the attacker allegedly filmed him on his phone and called his own parents, who arrived at the scene before the police.
Image credits: uvray_deceased
According to court documents, Digwa's mother, Kiran Kaur, took the weapon and hid it at their home to protect her son.
Vickrum, who identifies as a Sikh, then called emergency services, reportedly falsely claiming that he had been the victim of a racist attack. He alleged that Nowak was drunk, pulled off his turban, and punched him.
When officers from the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary arrived, they immediately accepted Digwa's version of events.
Image credits: Channel4News
In newly released bodycam footage, Henry can reportedly be heard repeatedly telling officers, “I've been stabbed” and “I can't breathe.” A male officer responded, “Don't think you have, mate.”
Officers then allegedly dragged Nowak along the ground, handcuffed him behind his back, and read him his rights, arresting him for a**ault.
Henry lost consciousness while in handcuffs, and by the time officers realized he had severe puncture wounds and removed the restraints to perform CPR, it was too late.
The university student was pronounced deceased at the scene at approximately 12:37 a.m.
The 18-year-old was reportedly stabbed five times following a verbal altercation with Vickrum Digwa last December
Image credits: Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images
Following the tragedy, Digwa was arrested, and during his m**der trial at Southampton Crown Court, evidence reportedly proved that his claims of a racist attack by Nowak were entirely fabricated.
Prosecutor Nicholas Lobbenberg KC and Judge William Mousley KC condemned his testimony as a series of “wicked lies” invented to cover up what prosecutors described as an unprovoked attack.
The prosecution also argued that Henry’s blood a*cohol level was well below the drink-driving limit and that he had made no racist remarks.
Image credits: Hampshire Police
Multiple outlets reported that secret police recordings captured inside a transit van, while Vickrum and his brother were being transported between custody facilities, caught Digwa speaking in Punjabi and openly confessing to stabbing Henry multiple times.
On May 28, the court found the 23-year-old guilty of the homicide of Nowak. Then, on Monday, June 1, Digwa was sentenced to life imprisonment, and Judge Mousley ruled that he must serve a minimum of 21 years before becoming eligible for parole.
During sentencing, the judge also criticized Vickrum for his lack of remorse and calculated deception, noting that Digwa’s false account misled emergency responders and delayed life-saving medical care for Nowak.
Following the trial, Henry’s father, Mark Nowak, spoke to reporters outside Southampton Crown Court, strongly criticizing the police response to his son's final moments and calling for urgent government action on knife crime.
In a statement, he said, “Justice in the eyes of the law has been served, but justice alone is not enough… We are calling on the Government to treat knife crime as the national emergency that it is…”
“Today, Henry was believed. The truth was recognized. Henry did not d*e with dignity. He did not d*e with the care he deserved. He lost consciousness before anyone believed him. Let me be absolutely clear – we hold Vickrum Digwa solely and 100% responsible for the brutal m**der of our son.”
“Henry did not d*e with dignity. He did not d*e with the care he deserved…” the victim’s grieving father, Mark Nowak, said in a public statement
Image credits: Channel4News
The grieving father continued, “But Henry should not have died on the streets of Southampton in police custody. The way he was treated was inhumane and degrading. His m**derer, however, was afforded decency. He was believed. He was not handcuffed when arrested. He was not handcuffed when transported to the police station.”
“And, as Vickrum Digwa himself told the court, while under arrest for Henry’s m**der, police even took him to the kitchen so he could choose his food. The contrast is unbearable,” Mark added.
“The IOPC investigation remains ongoing. While we await its final report, we are calling on the Home Secretary to ensure that the IOPC has the resources, authority and independence it needs to conduct a full, fearless and transparent investigation.
Image credits: moneycontrol
He concluded, “Our family should not have to fight for the truth anymore.”
During an emotional victim impact statement, Henry’s mother told the court, “Our family will never be the same. We’re trying to find a way to live with this as our new normal. But nothing about it feels normal.”
Meanwhile, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said in a public statement that Nowak was “actually treated in a way that meant an accusation of a racial slur was treated more seriously than an act of m**der.”
Violent protests erupted following the release of the bodycam footage, with enraged demonstrators reportedly attacking multiple police officers
Image credits: moneycontrol
He added, “Henry's family have responded to this in just the most extraordinarily dignified way, but I suggest the rest of us respond to this with pure cold rage. This is wrong. All the values and standards of living in a free country, where everybody is judged equally before the law, have been trashed and thrown away.”
“The biggest fear police officers now face is the fear of being reported for acting in a way that was racially biased.”
On Tuesday evening, June 2, violent protests and clashes erupted outside Southampton Central Police Station and near Digwa’s family home, as hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets following the release of the police bodycam footage.
Image credits: moneycontrol
The BBC reported that protesters held placards, chanted “Henry, Henry,” and adopted the phrase “I can’t breathe” to echo Nowak’s final words to officers.
As the crowd attempted to enter the residential street where Vickrum’s family lives, riot police blocked access to the area to protect local residents, triggering intense clashes.
Protesters reportedly pelted officers with bricks, stones, chairs, bins, flares, and even an e-scooter, resulting in injuries to 11 police officers and one police dog.
Image credits: moneycontrol
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Labor MP Darren Paffey strongly condemned the violence, stating that “whipping up violence has no place in Southampton.”
Henry’s father also reportedly spoke out against the riots, explicitly calling for calm and stating that the family does not want his son’s tragic passing to be used to fuel further hatred, tension, or division within the community.
The Manchester Evening News reported that one of the officers who responded on the night of the attack has since resigned from the force, with the resignation confirmed by Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary.
The other three officers involved remain on active duty and have not been suspended or subjected to any operational restrictions.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is currently treating all four officers as witnesses rather than subjects of misconduct proceedings, although it has stated that their status remains under review as investigators examine bodycam footage and court evidence.
The IOPC has announced that its investigation is expected to be completed and published within the next three months.
“Feel sorry for parents… Police force that is supposed to have protected your son, let him d*e on the streets, stripped of his dignity…” wrote one netizen
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