Killer’s Family Issues Message To Victim’s Loved Ones After Faking Racist Attack To Cover Up Stabbing

---

The family of Vickrum Digwa, the man jailed for murdering 18-year-old student Henry Nowak, has issued a public message to the teenager’s loved ones.

The case that has shocked Britain and sparked intense debate over knife crime, policing, and false allegations.

The statement comes days after Vickrum Digwa was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 21 years for fatally stabbing the university student in Southampton in December 2025, per the New York Times.

The case has attracted national attention not only because of the brutal killing itself, but because Digwa falsely claimed he had been the victim of a racist attack in the moments after the stabbing, a lie prosecutors said influenced the initial police response while Henry lay dying.

The fatal encounter

Henry Nowak was an 18-year-old first-year finance student described by family and friends as kind, ambitious, hardworking, and full of promise.

On the night of December 3, 2025, he was walking home in Southampton when he encountered Digwa, who was carrying a large bladed weapon.

According to evidence presented during the trial, Henry made a comment after noticing the weapon. Judge William Mousley said the teenager may have ‘cheekily’ asked Digwa whether he was ‘a bad man’ while recording on his phone.

The interaction quickly escalated.

The court heard Digwa responded by saying: “I am a bad man” before taking Henry’s phone. A struggle followed, during which Digwa’s turban may have been knocked or removed. Digwa then drew a blade and stabbed Henry multiple times.

The 23-year-old inflicted wounds to Henry’s legs and a fatal stab wound to his heart using a 21-centimeter blade.

False claims at the scene

Rather than immediately telling officers that he had stabbed someone, Digwa repeatedly claimed he had been racially abused and assaulted by Henry.

The court later found there was no evidence Henry had made racist remarks. Prosecutors described Digwa’s allegations as a deliberate lie designed to portray himself as the victim.

Those claims proved significant in the immediate aftermath of the attack.

When police arrived, they were told that Digwa had been subjected to racist abuse and physically attacked. Officers initially accepted his account while Henry lay critically wounded nearby.

Body-camera footage later released showed Henry repeatedly telling officers that he had been stabbed and struggling to breathe. At one point, an officer replied per the BBC: “I don’t think you have, mate.”

The footage shows Henry saying ‘I’ve been stabbed’ and ‘I can’t breathe’ multiple times while officers handcuffed him and informed him he was under arrest for assault.

Within minutes, officers realized the severity of his injuries and began administering first aid. However, Henry later died from his wounds.

Family outrage over police response

The release of the body-camera footage sparked widespread public outrage and renewed scrutiny of police actions that night.

Henry’s father, Mark Nowak, said his son ‘did not die with dignity’ and described the treatment he received as ‘inhumane and degrading,’ the BBC reports.

Speaking after sentencing, he accused officers of believing Digwa’s false account while ignoring repeated pleas from his dying son.

According to the family, Henry told officers he could not breathe nine times and informed them several times that he had been stabbed before losing consciousness.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct launched an investigation into the actions of the officers involved, examining issues including the use of handcuffs and the medical response provided at the scene.

Hampshire Police have since apologized, acknowledging the tragedy while maintaining that officers were initially misled by false information provided at the scene.

National debate erupts

The murder has sparked a broader debate across Britain.

Questions have been raised about knife crime, religious exemptions allowing Sikhs to carry ceremonial blades, police conduct, and accusations of so-called ‘two-tier policing,’ per LBC.

Politicians across the political spectrum have weighed in.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood described the murder as a ‘vile and violent crime’ and called the body-camera footage ‘disturbing and tragic.’ She also warned against misinformation and attempts to exploit the tragedy to divide communities.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he felt ‘sick’ watching the footage and supported the ongoing watchdog investigation into police actions.

Meanwhile, members of the Sikh community have strongly condemned the killing and stressed that Digwa’s actions should not be seen as representative of the faith. Several Sikh organizations have argued that the weapon used in the attack was not a traditional kirpan and have publicly denounced the murder.

Further legal proceedings continue

While Digwa has now been sentenced, legal proceedings connected to the case are ongoing.

His mother, Kiran Kaur, was convicted of assisting an offender after removing the weapon from the scene and taking it back to the family home. She is due to be sentenced in July.

Meanwhile, additional charges have reportedly been authorized against other members of the family in connection with weapons offenses.

The attorney general is also considering requests for Digwa’s sentence to be reviewed under the unduly lenient sentence scheme.

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary has confirmed that one of the four officers involved in the response to Henry Nowak’s stabbing has since resigned, while the remaining three officers continue to serve as the IOPC investigation remains ongoing, per LBC.

The family’s message

After days of public anger and intense media scrutiny, Digwa’s family released a statement expressing remorse over what happened and addressing both Henry’s relatives and the wider Sikh community, per GB News.

“The loss of a young life is a grief that no family should ever have to carry. We are deeply sorry for the pain and suffering the Nowak family has had to endure,” the statement said.

The family acknowledged that they continue to love Vickrum despite his actions, while also recognizing the devastation experienced by Henry’s loved ones.

“We love Vickrum. We will continue to love him. That love does not stand in opposition to the sorrow we feel for the Nowak family. Both are real, and both will remain with us for the rest of our lives,” they said.

They added: “We would give anything to turn back time so the path of both Henry and Vickrum never crossed that night. We cannot change what has happened, we just hope that no further pain is caused in its name.”

The statement concluded with an apology to the Sikh community, saying the family was sorry for their son’s actions and asking that the tragedy not be used to fuel division or hostility toward any community.

Related Article: Haunting Final Text Of Woman Stranded On Remote Island After Cruise Ship Left Without Her

Related Article: Five Divers Suffered ‘Worst Death Imaginable’ In Chilling Oil Rig Accident