Man who murdered Henry Nowak has sentence increased

Decision by Court of Appeal to increase Vickrum Digwa’s sentence follows a referral by Attorney General Ellie Reeves KC MP under the Unduly Lenient Sentence Scheme.

Vickrum Digwa, who stabbed Henry Nowak to death, had the minimum term of his life sentence increased by 4 years to 25 years, after Attorney General Ellie Reeves KC referred the case to the Court of Appeal under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme.  

The court heard that on the evening of 3 December 2025, Vickrum Digwa, 23, of St Denys, Southampton, was carrying a large Sikh dagger in a sheath over the outside of his clothing, when he encountered Henry Nowak, an 18-year-old first year student at Southampton University who was walking home.  

Digwa and Nowak were entirely unknown to each other. Following a brief interaction, Digwa stabbed Nowak in the chest with the dagger, as well as several times to his legs and abdomen.   

After the attack, Digwa then filmed the victim as he tried to get away from him and continued to film him as he lay dying. Digwa was also found to have instructed his mother to remove the murder weapon and repeatedly lied to attending police officers about what had happened.  

In a Victim Impact Statement, Henry’s father described the devastating impact of his son’s death and the deep grief experienced by the family at losing him at such a young age.  

The Attorney General Ellie Reeves KC MP said:  

The brutality and cruelty of this case horrified me, and I know that feeling is shared by the British public. I welcome the Court of Appeal’s decision to increase the minimum term of Digwa’s life sentence.  

My thoughts remain with Henry’s family and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time. No sentence can ever fill the void left by his loss, and I hope this outcome goes some way towards bringing them the justice they deserve.

On 1 June 2026, at Southampton Crown Court, Digwa was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 21 years for one count of murder and one count of having a bladed article.   

On 5 November 2026, at the Court of Appeal, Digwa’s sentence was increased to a minimum term of 25 years.