A Sikh man who claimed to be the victim of a racist attack has been found guilty of murder for the murder of student Henry Novak, whose death became infamous after it was revealed he was handcuffed by police and ignored as he lay bleeding.
A killer who lied to police about repeatedly stabbing a teenager, and covered himself up by telling “evil lies” about using racist abuse against his victim, has been found guilty by a jury at Southampton Crown Court in Hampshire, England, this afternoon. pulley
After the guilty verdicts were read, it was revealed that an anti-“two-tier policing” protest was called for Thursday night outside Southampton Central police station over the force’s reactive tendency to believe allegations of racism while ignoring factual stabbing reports.
The jury of eight women and four men began deliberating at lunchtime on Wednesday and found 23-year-old Vikram Digva guilty of murder on Thursday afternoon. Digwa was also found guilty of carrying a knife in a public place. Digva’s mother, Kiran Kaur, was also found guilty of assisting a criminal by removing the murder weapon from the scene of the crime and hiding it in her family home.
The BBC reports that Degua showed no emotion according to the jury’s report, that Kaur was “visibly upset”, and that “sobs” could be heard from the public gallery.
Killer Digva will be sentenced on Monday, the judge said. Mother Kaur’s sentencing will be delayed until July 17 to allow pre-sentence reports to be prepared, Sky News reports.
As previously reported, Novak and Degua met by chance on December 3, 2025 in the city of Southampton. The court heard that Nowak, an accountancy and finance student, had been out with friends from his student football team and had consumed alcohol that evening, but was not drunk at the time of his death and could legally drive a car.
Words were exchanged between the men and DeGava chased Novak and stabbed him five times, including twice in the back of the legs and once in the chest. After a brief delay, apparently allowing several members of Degawa’s family to arrive at the scene, the police were eventually called and informed that a racist attack had occurred, with no mention of a stabbing.
When officers arrived at the scene they arrested the now dying Henry Novak and ignored his protests over being stabbed until it became impossible to ignore the fact that he was drowning in his own blood. Officers then attempted to revive Novak and called an air ambulance, but he was later pronounced dead at the scene.
In an earlier hearing, police bodycam footage was shown to the court. As officers arrive at the scene, Novak is seen being held against a wall by murdered Digva’s father, who accuses the victim of “pretending” to be injured, while the teen complains of being unable to breathe. Novak’s chest was filled with blood at this point as his knife wound had severed an artery.
Police are seen on video arresting Novak, who is lying on his side on the ground, and again trying to tell officers that he has been stabbed, to which an invisible male responds, “I don’t think you’ve been stabbed, buddy”.
A police spokesperson apologized for his officers arresting Novak, the teenager killed at the crime scene, and insisted they were doing their best based on lying, and cited the pathologist who said the officers would not have been able to save Novak from the deep wounds even if they had believed him.
Vikram Digwa [L]Kiran Kaur [R]hampshire police handout
Temporary Deputy Chief Constable Robert France said Hampshire Police had referred the matter into the death to the Independent Office for Police Conduct and an independent investigation was underway, the local newspaper reported. daily echo. He said:
…This is an unspeakable tragedy and I can’t imagine what Henry’s family has had to endure. I am deeply saddened that Henry could not be saved. I am deeply sorry that within moments he became unconscious, was handcuffed and arrested.
The facts heard in court should leave no doubt in anyone’s mind who was lying to the authorities that night, and why we didn’t immediately understand what happened.
He continued:
His injuries were deep and internal, the bleeding which the court was told had resulted in the tragic loss of his life was internal. The pathologist was very clear about this and it was also clear that unfortunately there was nothing the authorities could have done that day that would have saved Henry’s life.
None of that changes the fact that it’s important to me that, you know, I’m sorry that Henry was handcuffed and arrested moments before he was unconscious, that he suffered.
Justice spokesperson for Reform UK Robert Jenrick Demanded the public know the full truth of the case and called on police to release the footage shown to the jury. He said of the police apology: “Apologies are not enough.
“We need to see the body-worn footage and these officers need to face consequences. The treatment of this murdered student in his final moments is a national scandal.”
In a letter to the government, written before the decision but made public shortly after, Jenrick demanded to know “why do racial sensitivities continue to shape how police enforce the law these days?” He further noted how top government lawmakers remained silent on the matter, while he rushed to comment on “other incidents of police-involved deaths both in the UK and abroad”.
The issue raised by Jenrick regarding the consequences for police officers handcuffing a dying teen was previously raised by a number of celebrities, including Elon Musk, who vowed to “fund wrongful death lawsuits against these despicable excuses for law enforcement.”
