Vickrum Singh Digwa, 23, has been found guilty of the murder of 18-year-old university student Henry Nowak after stabbing him five times with a 21cm Sikh ceremonial knife, known as a kirpan, in Belmont Road, Portswood, in the southern English city of Southampton on December 3, 2025.
The case has caused widespread controversy after police handcuffed the dying Nowak rather than treating his wounds.
On May 28, the jury at Southampton Crown Court rejected Digwa’s claim of self-defence. Trial judge William Mousley KC had also directed jurors to consider the lesser charge of manslaughter, but they convicted him of murder.
Nowak, a first-year accountancy and finance student at the University of Southampton and originally from Chafford Hundred in Essex, eastern England, was walking home from a night out with friends when the fatal attack took place shortly before 11.30pm.
Prosecutors told the court that Digwa, who had trained with blades since he was 12, stabbed Nowak multiple times — including two wounds to the backs of his legs and a fatal wound to the chest.
As the teenager lay bleeding heavily in the street, Digwa told arriving officers that he had been the victim of a racist attack.
Police handcuffed the dying Nowak instead of immediately treating his wounds. Bodycam footage shown in court captured the teenager desperately telling officers he had been stabbed while struggling to breathe. He died at the scene despite efforts to treat him.
Digwa was also convicted of carrying a blade in public. His mother, Kiran Kaur, 53, was found guilty of assisting an offender after removing the murder weapon from the scene. Police later found more than 20 other weapons at the family home.
Throughout the trial, Digwa claimed Nowak had used a racial slur, punched him and tried to pull off his turban before he reached for the blade. The prosecution described these claims as a “wicked lie” designed to shift blame onto the dying victim. The jury reached its murder verdict within hours.
Earlier, the Sikh community had distanced itself from Digwa. Secret recordings made by police captured his brother saying: “You should say it was self defence,” to which Digwa replied: “It was my fault, or mistake.”
He never told officers that Nowak was wounded. Instead, he claimed he had been racially attacked and sought to portray the victim as a drunk looking for trouble.
A pathologist told the court there was “no evidence” Nowak had been punching anyone. Toxicological analysis presented in court found that Nowak was below the legal drink-driving limit, undermining Digwa’s claim that the student had been heavily intoxicated.
Crucially, a Snapchat video taken by Nowak moments before the attack was shown to the court, in which he filmed Digwa and said: “Go on, say you are a bad man.” Digwa is seen replying: “I am a bad man.” He then took Nowak’s phone and held it throughout the incident.
Another video, recorded by Digwa, showed Nowak climbing over a fence trying to escape. “You’re not going to get away with this big man,” Digwa can be heard saying. Nowak can be heard replying: “I’ve been stabbed.”
Digwa will be sentenced on June 1 and his mother on July 17.
After the verdict, Hampshire Police Deputy Chief Constable Robert France apologised on behalf of the officers but said they had been “lied to” and would have been unaware that Nowak was injured. The force said it had realised within minutes that something was wrong and had tried to save Nowak before arresting Digwa.
Today, a man has been convicted of the murder of student Henry Nowak in Southampton. Throughout the trial, we have not discussed this case publicly to ensure that justice could be done but now we can share a message from DCC Robert France.https://t.co/13203Yq9DA
— Hampshire Police (@HantsPolice) May 28, 2026
Paying tribute to Nowak after his death, his family said the accountancy and finance student had been “fully embracing university life” and had been out with his football team mates on the night of his death.
Describing him as “our kind, intelligent and talented son”, they said: “Henry was loved by all those that knew him.
“Our hearts ache when we think of the bright future he had ahead of him, full of opportunity and adventures.”
They added they they were “proud of him and all he achieved”.
“Our world will never be the same without our amazing Henry.”
The case has reignited intense debate about “two-tier policing” after Hampshire Police later apologised for handcuffing Nowak while he bled out.
The incident has been widely criticised as a shocking failure to prioritise a clear medical emergency over an immediate accusation of racism.
While there has been attention for the killing in the UK and worldwide online, international media was a lot less interested in the case.
Public anger has mounted in the United Kingdom over the death of an 18-year-old British student who lay dying in a Southampton street, southern England, after being stabbed four times, only for police officers to handcuff him instead of immediately treating his wounds after his…
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) May 22, 2026
