Henry Nowak murder: What we know about how the events unfolded

Here is the latest breaking news from around the world: Henry Nowak murder: What we know about how the events unfolded10 minutes ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleEmma Harrison ,Ella KiplingandMatt Spivey Nowak killing: Key moments of police bodycam footageHenry Nowak repeatedly told officers he had been stabbed, but he was handcuffed by police after his killer Vickrum Digwa falsely claimed he had been racially abused. The 18-year-old was just a few months into his first year at university when he was killed on his way home to his accommodation in Southampton on 3 December. Digwa has been jailed for life with a minimum of 21 years for the murder.

This is what we know of how the night unfolded, including what we learned from CCTV and bodycam footage, a transcript of the 999 call and the judge's sentencing remarks. At 20:30 GMT on the night of the murder, Nowak was seen on CCTV entering a lift at his university's halls of residence wearing a white shirt, tie and quarter-zip fleece while holding a bottle. He checked his hair in the mirror before he exited the lift and walked out into the corridor.

The Details

CCTV footage then captured him entering a convenience store and buying a drink. He then arrived at The Hobbit pub in Southampton and was checked for ID by the bouncers at the entrance. Footage from inside the pub shows Nowak going down the stairs and passing a group of people in the beer garden.

He then made his way back upstairs to head out onto the street. At 23:07, Nowak can be seen making his way back towards his university accommodation. Nowak is then captured on CCTV walking past a group of people on a road lit up by streetlamps.

At the end of the footage, he can be seen picking up his pace and jogging down the road. PAHenry Nowak was 18 when he was killed in Southampton in December 2025During Digwa's sentencing on Monday, Judge William Mousley KC described how Nowak's journey home took him north along Belmont Road to the junction with St Denys Road - where his killer lived. Judge Mousley said Digwa, 23, was walking south along Belmont Road at the same time, in what "was to be a chance meeting".

What Experts Say

Nowak was alone and unarmed, the judge said. He added that the 18-year-old was not drunk, and his blood alcohol level was found to be below the drink-drive limit. Digwa, who is Sikh, was carrying a knife in a sheath on his belt which Nowak then began filming on his phone, the judge said.

Judge Mousley commented that it is a strict requirement of the Sikh faith to carry a knife, called a kirpan, at all times. The judge also said Digwa was carrying a second, larger dagger in a sheath - which is also a part of his tradition as a member of the Nihang order of Sikhs. Wearing the second knife is not a strict requirement, he added.

Mousley KC said that Nowak asked Digwa if he was a "bad man", likely to have been prompted by him noticing the dagger. The judge said Digwa told Nowak he was "a bad man" and took the student's phone. The "exact events which immediately followed" were only witnessed by the two men, the judge noted.

The story has become one of the most prominent items on the global agenda.