Henry Nowak’s killer has minimum term increased to 25 years by Court of Appeal

A man jailed for life for murdering Henry Nowak has had his minimum prison term increased to 25 years by the Court of Appeal. Vickrum Digwa was serving a minimum of 21 years for stabbing 18-year-old student Nowak with a large dagger in Belmont Road, Southampton, on 3 December 2025. The Attorney General referred the case to the Court of Appeal on the grounds it was "unduly lenient", while Digwa also challenged his jail term as "manifestly excessive".

The Lady Chief Justice quashed the sentence, ruling the original term "did not adequately reflect the overall seriousness of the murder". Digwa, who was also refused permission to appeal, told police Henry had attacked and racially abused him, which led to Henry, from Chafford Hundred in Essex, being handcuffed as he lay dying. The trial judge later found Digwa's accusations of racism to be a lie.

Then 22, he was jailed for life at Southampton Crown Court in June. Both appeals were heard on Thursday by Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr, Mr Justice Nicklin and Mr Justice Wall, with Digwa appearing via video link from HMP Frankland.