An 18-year-old student was stabbed to death in Southampton while police handcuffed him instead of his killer
Southampton, United Kingdom — June 3, 2026
A case that has shaken Britain to its core. An 18-year-old university student was stabbed to death in Southampton — and when police arrived, they handcuffed the dying victim while his killer walked free. The bodycam footage that proved it has now been seen by millions. And the country is furious.
Henry Nowak was an 18-year-old Polish-British university student in his first year studying accountancy at the University of Southampton. He grew up in Chafford Hundred, Essex.
By all accounts he was a beloved young man — passionate about football, full of life, with everything ahead of him. On the night of December 3, 2025, he went out with teammates from his university football club. He never came home.
Nowak was murdered by Vickrum Digwa, a 23-year-old man, who cut and stabbed Nowak a total of five times using a knife. When police arrived, Digwa accused Nowak of assault — and they handcuffed Nowak.
Nowak was dragged across gravel, placed under arrest for assault and left in handcuffs as he lost consciousness and drowned in his own blood — while his killer remained uncuffed after falsely claiming to be the victim of a racist attack.
In the bodycam footage, Nowak is seen lying on his back, telling police he had been stabbed as they grabbed his wrists and tried to make him sit up. He repeatedly said he couldn't breathe. "You've been stabbed? Whereabouts?" an officer responded. "Don't think you have, mate."
Henry Nowak died shortly after.
The jury convicted Digwa of murder on May 28, 2026. Digwa's mother, Kiran Kaur, 53, was found guilty of assisting an offender. The judge rejected Digwa's accusations that Nowak had physically or racially abused him. Digwa received a sentence of life imprisonment with a minimum of 21 years.
Justice, ultimately, was served in the courtroom. But the question of what happened outside that courtroom — on the street, in the moments after Henry Nowak was stabbed — has not been answered to the satisfaction of millions of British people.
The release of the bodycam footage triggered immediate and explosive public outrage.
Hundreds protested outside Southampton Central Police Station. Violence erupted. Chairs, cans, flares, bricks, bins and an e-scooter were thrown at riot police, forcing officers to retreat in some areas. Eleven officers and a police dog were injured. Two people were arrested.
A large group walked to an area near where Nowak was killed and clashed with riot police, who retreated as they were pelted with chairs, rocks and flares. Some protesters shouted "I can't breathe" — an echo of the George Floyd protests that swept the world in 2020.
The case has reignited one of the most explosive debates in British public life — whether the country's police force applies different standards depending on the race or background of those involved.
The case has triggered protests, renewed accusations of two-tier policing and an investigation into how British authorities handled the incident.
Critics argue that had the racial dynamics of the case been reversed, police would have acted differently. Defenders of the officers say they were responding to the information available to them at the time.
Amid the fury and the riots, Henry Nowak's father Mark offered a remarkably measured response.
Mark Nowak said the case was not about racism or religion and that he wanted his son's death to lead to safer streets — not to be used to create "further division, hatred or tension."
His son deserved better. Britain is now asking whether its institutions can deliver it.
DeSanta News will continue to follow developments in this case and the ongoing investigation into police conduct.
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April 9, 2026 · 2 min read
