A Sikh man has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 21 years for the knife murder of an 18-year-old university student in Southampton. Vickrum Digwa, 23, was convicted at Southampton Crown Court on 28 May 2026 of murdering Henry Nowak, a first-year accountancy and finance student at the University of Southampton, and of carrying a bladed article in public.
Family’s condemnation of police treatment and call for action on knife crime
Speaking outside court, Henry’s father Mark Nowak, supported by his family, condemned the “shocking” treatment of his son by police and urged the Government to treat knife crime as a “national emergency”. He said: “We want to use Henry’s heart-breaking story to make change for the better. We do not want his death to be used to create further division, hatred or tension. We want his story to help make our streets safer for everyone.”
Mr Nowak called for “real solutions”, including investment in prevention and “stronger action on the sale, ownership and carrying of all knives”. He added: “And, as this case so painfully demonstrates, we need common sense applied to our laws. This doesn’t mean knee-jerk reactions. This doesn’t mean going to extremes. It just means a common-sense approach to law and order.”
Echoing the prosecution’s KC, Mr Nowak stressed: “This is not a case about Sikhism. This is not a case about racism. This is a case about murder. People should not be able to walk openly through the streets of Britain carrying a 21cm blade.”
Henry Nowak, a Polish-British student from Chafford Hundred, Essex, was stabbed five times in Belmont Road, Portswood, on 3 December 2025, as he walked home after a night out with friends. The fatal wound was to his heart. Digwa was filmed by his victim saying “I am a bad man” moments before the attack, which also included two stab wounds to the back of Mr Nowak’s legs.
The family have also demanded a “full, fearless and transparent investigation” into the police response. Officers who attended the scene handcuffed Henry Nowak after Digwa claimed he had been the victim of a racist attack. The prosecution said Digwa told officers a “wicked lie”. Despite Nowak’s pleas that he was injured, he was placed in handcuffs and collapsed moments later, dying despite first aid. Hampshire Police have since apologised for handcuffing him, acknowledging he was the victim. The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is investigating the circumstances, and the Prime Minister has said it is right that the watchdog is investigating. Tech billionaire Elon Musk posted on X an offer to fund a private prosecution against the police. Mr Nowak said: “Our family should not have to fight for the truth any more.”
Judge’s condemnation of wider impact and religious context
Sentencing Digwa, Judge William Mousley KC delivered a detailed rebuke, noting that the defendant’s actions had far-reaching consequences. The judge said Digwa was a member of the Nihang order of Sikhs who have a tradition of carrying a second, larger knife, or kirpan, often fully visible. While a small kirpan is a strict requirement for Sikhs, the judge said the larger knife carried by Digwa was “not a strict requirement”. He observed: “You observed that tradition in your everyday life, at work and in public. However, it was not a strict requirement; that is borne out by the fact that neither your brother nor father, who arrived on the scene after you had stabbed Henry, were so dressed.”
Judge Mousley told the defendant, who showed no emotion: “In addition to killing Henry, and the irreparable harm to those close to him, you have also caused real suffering to others who knew him. You have brought shame upon your family, your community and your religion. Your actions have stirred up racial tension in Southampton and across the country which have made many Sikhs worried about their own safety even though they have done absolutely nothing wrong.”
After the verdict was delivered, security officers had to intervene to stop a verbal altercation breaking out in the public gallery.
Digwa had claimed in evidence that Henry Nowak, who he described as drunk, had racially abused him, punched him and knocked his turban off, and that he had stabbed the student in self-defence, saying he did not realise he had inflicted a fatal chest wound. The prosecution dismissed this as a “wicked lie”, noting that Nowak’s blood alcohol level was below the legal limit and that Digwa had no injuries consistent with his account. The judge said he was “sure that Henry had said nothing racist”.
Prosecutors described Digwa as “weapon-obsessed”, with evidence suggesting a fascination with knives. The murder weapon was a 21cm ceremonial blade described in court as a kirpan. The Sikh Federation has since stated that the weapon used “was not a kirpan” and that the case unnecessarily brought the kirpan into disrepute, emphasising that the law only provides a defence for fully practising Sikhs and that the weapon in question did not meet that standard.
Digwa’s mother, Kiran Kaur, was found guilty of assisting an offender for removing the murder weapon from the scene. She is due to be sentenced on 17 July. The IOPC investigation into the police response remains ongoing.
