A jury at Southampton Crown Court has found 23-year-old Vickrum Digwa guilty of murdering 18-year-old university student Henry Nowak, who was fatally stabbed during an incident in Southampton.

The court heard that Digwa attacked Mr Nowak with a ceremonial knife, inflicting five stab wounds, including injuries to the chest and back as the victim attempted to flee.One wound pierced a major vein, causing severe internal bleeding that led to his death at the scene.Following the attack, Digwa did not immediately seek medical assistance.Instead, he attempted to dispose of the weapon and allegedly constructed a narrative claiming he had been the victim of a racist assault.This account was communicated to emergency services during a 999 call and repeated by those present at the scene.

As a result of the confusion, police initially detained Mr Nowak, who was critically injured and struggling to breathe, before the severity of his condition was recognised and an ambulance was called.The prosecution argued that Digwa’s account was deliberately misleading and designed to evade responsibility.During the trial, he admitted to stabbing the victim but claimed self-defence, alleging the student had tried to attack him.The jury rejected this version of events, finding him guilty of murder and possession of a bladed article.Digwa’s mother, Kiran Kaur, was also convicted of assisting an offender after she removed and concealed the weapon.

The case has prompted wider scrutiny of the police response and led to an investigation by the Independent Office for Police Conduct into the handling of the incident, including the arrest of the injured victim and the delay in emergency medical treatment.Authorities have since acknowledged that mistakes were made during a complex and fast-moving situation.