DISTRESSING CONTENT Keir Starmer has said he ‘felt sick’ after watching harrowing footage of handcuffed Henry Nowak being dismissed by police as he lay dying in Southampton last year
Keir Starmer has said he “felt sick” watching bodycam footage of handcuffed Henry Nowak as he lay dying.
The Prime Minister said that as a dad of a 17-year-old, he found the video, recorded by police responding to the tragedy, “harrowing”. He also criticised Nigel Farage for urging followers to respond with “pure cold rage” after murderer Vickrum Digwa – who falsely claimed to have been the victim of a racial attack – was jailed.
In the footage, released on Monday after Digwa was sentenced for a minimum term of 21 years, finance student Henry repeatedly told officers he had been stabbed. He told police he could not breathe, but one officer told him: “I don’t think you have (been stabbed) mate.”
Mr Starmer said: “This has understandably been devastating for his parents, for his family and everybody who knew him. And I have seen the bodycam footage. It’s harrowing, and I have to say, as a father of a 17 year old boy, I felt sick watching it.”
He said it is “absolutely right” that the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is investigating the police response. The PM said searching questions need to be asked to determine how the murderer’s false allegation of racism fed into the decision-making on the night Henry died.
Henry, 18, was murdered in Southampton in December last year by Digwa, who stabbed his victim with an eight-inch blade he said he carried for religious reasons. Digwa had then told a “wicked” lie to responding police officers, claiming he had been racially abused by Mr Nowak, who Southampton Crown Court heard was handcuffed and dismissed by officers, and left to choke to death on his own blood.
Mr Starmer criticised Reform UK leader Mr Farage, who has been accused of making incendiary remarks about the tragic case. Mr Farage claimed in a social media video: “We’re living in a two-tier culture in this country where the rights and privileges of white people matter less than those of ethnic minorities.” And he went on:”We should respond to this with pure cold rage.”
On Monday Henry’s dad Mark Nowak told reporters outside court: “We do not want his death to be used to create further division, hatred or tension. We want his story to make our streets safer for everyone.”
Mr Starmer said: “I think Nigel Farage’s reaction is the wrong reaction, and I start my answer to your question through the eyes of the family. They have said they do not want this whipped up. They have been through the most extraordinary, awful experience. They don’t want this whipped up.
“And Nigel Farage is completely wrong to use this to try and create division. He would be wrong in any circumstances, but when Henry’s family are saying please don’t do that, it is our son, then really politicians as human beings should start where they start. And that is where I start.”
Footage captured on a body camera by a Hampshire Police officer, shows Henry slumped against a house and being held upright by Digwa’s father, Moga Singh. The killer claimed during his trial that Henry had used racist words towards him during an altercation which saw his turban knocked off.
Southampton Crown Court was told that Digwa, who the video shows does not have his turban on as police arrived at the scene, likely took his own turban off beforehand. Digwa complains he has a “swollen eye and a little bruise”, before Henry can be heard saying “I’ve been stabbed”, to which an officer replies: “Lets get you out of here shall we?”
The officer then begins shuffling the teen’s body across the gravel of the property he was found on, while he says “I’ve been stabbed” again and complains he “can’t breathe”. After saying he was stabbed another time, one of the officers says: “You’ve been stabbed? Whereabouts?” The officer then adds: “I don’t think you have mate.”
He is then handcuffed by the officer while continuing to say “I can’t breathe”, adding he has been stabbed in the face before he is laid on his side and read his rights. The court heard that, as he was being arrested, Henry was suffering from eight stab wounds inflicted by Digwa, who wielded a 21cm (eight inch) blade.
In an update to MPs following Digwa’s sentencing, Shabana Mahmood warned of a “dangerous undercurrent” of misinformation as she said the teenager’s family will get answers. In an impassioned plea, the Home Secretary called for calm and said the “evil act” must not lead to communities turning against each other. She promised that the IOPC will have all the resources it needs to probe the way officers responded to the stabbing.
MPs heard that a police officer had received death threats after being wrongly identified as being involved. Ms Mahmood told the Commons: “It was an evil act.” She continued: “We cannot allow this murder to turn communities against one another. We must condemn those who seek personal, political profit from tragedy.
“Instead, we must show who we really are in this country. This was a murder, a vile and violent crime. The punishment must be reserved for those who are responsible for the act. We do not believe in collective punishment in this country.”
The Home Secretary pushed back against Nigel Farage’s claim that the actions of police demonstrated a “two-tier” system discriminating against white people. The Home Secretary went on: “There have been accusations I know, of two-tier policing, that one community has been prioritised over another. It will be for the IOPC to determine the facts with regard to this specific case, and I cannot and will not comment on them.
“But let me say this on the question of preferential treatment more widely – the police in this country have a sacred duty to police without fear or favour. Everyone in this country is equal before the law. It is the promise upon which our whole justice system rests, and the equality of every citizen is the foundation on which the openness, tolerance and generosity of this country rests.”
Ms Mahmood told the Commons: “Let me also be clear about one other thing, a dangerous undercurrent that I have seen in the reaction to this awful crime. Threats against police officers are utterly unacceptable.
“There can be no justification for intimidation, abuse or attempts to take the law into one’s own hands. A police officer unrelated to this case has been misidentified online and subjected to death threats.
“He has been forced to relocate to protect himself and his family. Misinformation and inflammatory commentary is making a dreadful situation even worse. We must all together condemn it, and we must also allow the facts to be established with the appropriate investigations and the courts, and we must do so calmly and responsibly.
“The Novak family and Henry’s memory deserve answers.”
Henry’s father said following Digwa’s sentencing that the 23-year-old was “solely and 100% responsible for the brutal murder of our son”, but decried the “inhumane and degrading” treatment by police. He said: “Henry should not have died on the streets of Southampton in police custody. The way he was treated was inhumane and degrading.
“His murderer, however, was afforded decency. He was believed. He was not handcuffed when arrested. He was not handcuffed when transported to the police station. As far as we understand, he was never handcuffed at all. And, as Vickrum Digwa himself told the court, while under arrest for Henry’s murder, police even took him to the kitchen so he could choose his food. The contrast is unbearable.”
His family described Henry in a statement as “our kind, intelligent and talented son”, adding he “was loved by all those that knew him”. They said in a statement: “Our hearts ache when we think of the bright future he had ahead of him, full of opportunity and adventures.” The family also said that they were “proud of him and all he achieved”, adding: “Our world will never be the same without our amazing Henry.”
Ms Mahmood said: “I can and must pay tribute today to the dignified and powerful words of the Nowak family in the statement they gave after yesterday’s sentencing. They deserve answers.
“They deserve answers in particular, about what happened on that awful night and the actions of the police officers who arrived on the scene. I expect many in this House and many more across this country, have now seen the police officer’s bodycam footage released last night.
“It is, without question, a disturbing and tragic thing to see. People are rightly asking questions about how the situation was handled, and they are shocked and disquieted to hear Henry’s words ‘I can’t breathe’.”
Reform frontbencher Robert Jenrick suggested that officers behaved as they did due to the “sickness rooted in the anti-racism agenda”. He asked: “Will the Home Secretary root it out? Will she return to equality before the law for all?
“And will she say that when it comes to public safety, white lives matter just as much as anyone else’s?” Ms Mahmood responded: “Let me say to the honorable gentleman, I don’t think this is a moment to pit white Britons against non-white Britons.
“This is a moment to reflect on a horrific tragedy. He knows full well that the IOPC is investigating the conduct of those police officers.
“It would be wholly inappropriate for a member of this House to seek to preempt an independent investigation into the potential misconduct of police officers.”
In another victim personal statement, Henry Nowak’s stepfather said his stepson was not racist, stating the teen would “not tolerate racism, sexism or bullying”. The statement read out in court said: “He treated people with respect and kindness and that is something I admired deeply.” It added: “He was deeply loved and brought so much positivity into the lives of those around him.”
Digwa’s family have now apologised both to the family of Henry and for bringing the Sikh community into “disrepute”. The statment, issued through the Sikh Press Association, comes as Digwa’s mum, Kiran Kaur, awaits sentencing for assisting an offender by taking the knife used to kill Henry back to the nearby family home. The 53-year-old will be sentenced on July 17 once a pre-sentence report has been prepared.
Meanwhile, Digwa, his brother and father are set to appear in court this afternoon facing multiple weapons charges. Digwa faces six counts of possessing an offensive weapon in a private place. The alleged weapons are a flick knife, an extendable baton, knuckledusters, a machete, swords and kusaris – a type of Japanese handheld weapon with a weight at the end, sometimes attached to a sickle as a kusarigama.
His dad, Moga Singh, 52, and brother, Gurpreet Digwa, 27, of Southampton, face the same charges, while Gurpreet faces four additional charges. They are possessing an offensive weapon, asn asp, in a public place; possessing a prohibited weapon, an air rifle; possessing an axe in a public place; and possessing a knife, a kirpan, in a public place. All the offences are dated December 4, 2025 – the day after Henry was stabbed. The three are set to appear at Southampton Magistrates’ Court this afternoon.
In the statement, unnamed members of the family said: “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. 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. 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.
“We apologise to the Sikh community for our son’s actions which have unfairly brought the community into disrepute. We ask that this tragedy is not used by anyone to inflame division or hostility towards any community. We now ask for privacy as we come to terms with what lies ahead.”
The attorney general’s office is also considering Digwa’s jail sentence after receiving “multiple requests” to review it under the unduly lenient sentence (ULS) scheme. A spokesman for the attorney general’s office said: “We have received multiple requests for Vickrum Digwa’s setnence to be considered under the unduly lenient sentence (ULS) scheem. The law officers have 28 days from sentencing to carefully consider the case and make a decision.”
Hampshire Police promised to act on recommendations made by the IOPC. The watchdog’s director, Derrick Campbell, said in a statement that the organisation is reviewing body-worn footage.
He said: “We acknowledge that this case has raised questions about the actions of the attending officers and we are aware that a few minutes of police body-worn footage has been issued by the force following the conclusion of criminal proceedings. As part of our ongoing investigation we are reviewing a large amount of police body-worn footage, which we need to consider in context with other evidence we have obtained, including reviewing material presented during the murder trial, as we establish the full circumstances. Now that criminal proceedings have concluded, we are planning to meet with Mr Nowak’s family and provide them with updates about our investigation.”
Hampshire Police confirmed on Tuesday evening the resignation of one of the officers involved in the case. A spokesperson said: “Three of the officers are still serving, one officer has resigned. As the IOPC has confirmed, they are all being treated as witnesses, so not subject to any current restrictions.”
On Tuesday morning Cabinet Office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds described the conduct of police officer in Henry’s case as “shocking”. He told the BBC’s Today programme on Tuesday morning: “The footage, the body-cam footage, is every parent’s nightmare.”
“It is harrowing, and it is absolutely shocking, and the conduct of the police, when you look at it at the scene, is shocking. I’m sure your thoughts, my thoughts, the thoughts of all your listeners this morning are with Henry’s family and Henry’s friends, not only being the victim of a heinous crime, but also the lies of the perpetrator, the lies at the scene, the false accusations of racism.”
He branded the incident a “heinous event”, but said the investigation would lie with the IOPC, and added that the Government would not examine a national exemption allowing Sikhs and other religions using them for ceremonial reasons to carry knives. He said: “There is an exception in terms of carrying bladed articles in public places for particular religious and ceremonial reasons. And whilst, of course, we’ve been tightening up the law, we’ve banned things like terrible zombie knives, we’ve tightened up the law in terms of online purchasing of knives.”
“It’s not about looking, I think, more broadly at that particular exception. Indeed, if you look at what the judge said in this case, the judge actually said that the minute that this perpetrator removed the blade from the sheath, you can forget any sense of there being some sort of exception to the law.
“And he also said the fact that this perpetrator was willing to use a bladed article was an abuse of the privilege that Sikhs and indeed other religions have. It was something that made this case worse because of that abuse of that privilege.”