A man has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 21 years for the murder of an 18-year-old student in a street attack. Vickrum Digwa fatally stabbed Henry Nowak with a Sikh ceremonial knife, known as a kirpan, on 3 December 2025.
The attack and conviction
Digwa, who told his victim “I am a bad man” before the stabbing, was convicted of murder and carrying a bladed weapon. His mother, Kiran Kaur, was found guilty of assisting an offender by removing the weapon from the scene.
Following the attack, Digwa falsely claimed that Mr Nowak had racially abused him. This led police to handcuff the injured victim, who then collapsed and died. The force later apologised, and the Independent Office for Police Conduct launched an investigation.
Family tribute
In a statement, Mr Nowak’s mother, Lucy, described her son as “ambitious, determined and full of life”. She added: “He had his whole life ahead of him, that future has been cruelly taken away.”
