‘I can’t breathe’: UK police face backlash after handcuffing dying teen Henry Nowak
3 min readUpdated: Jun 3, 2026 01:48 PM IST
UK police are facing severe public backlash over their handling of a stabbing case involving an 18-year-old student, Henry Nowak.
Nowak was handcuffed by cops as he lay dying from stab wounds, following a knife attack in the southern England city of Southampton last December.
The attacker, identified as Vickrum Digwa, a 23-year-old Sikh man, was sentenced to life in prison on Monday (Jun 1). He, according to news agency Reuters, falsely claimed that Nowak had assaulted him.
The British police initially acted on Digwa’s allegations and restrained the seriously injured teenager.
‘I can’t breathe’
The police bodycam footage showed Nowak lying on the street saying, “I’ve been stabbed” and “I can’t breathe,” as an officer replies, “I don’t think you have, mate.”
Prime Minister Keir Starmer emphasised that the case raised “serious questions,” including how “allegations of racism informed or fed into the decision-making in that particular case.”
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“It is impossible to watch that footage and not appreciate that those questions absolutely have to be answered,” the UK PM told reporters.
People, on Tuesday (Jun 2), took to the streets and chanted “I can’t breathe” outside the Southampton police station.
Nowak’s family sharply criticised law enforcement, labelling the police’s treatment of their dying son as “inhumane and degrading.”
Speaking outside the court, Nowak’s father, Mark Nowak, said, “Henry did not die with dignity. He did not die with the care he deserved. We hold Vickrum Digwa solely and 100% responsible for the brutal murder of our son. But Henry should not have died on the streets of Southampton in police custody. The way he was treated was inhumane and degrading.”
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“We are calling on the government to treat knife crime as the national emergency that it is,” he added.
Digwa killed Nowak with ‘large Sikh dagger’
Digwa killed Nowak with a “large Sikh dagger” that he said he was carrying for religious reasons.
The two men were having a brief interaction in Southampton, following which Digwa stabbed Nowak.
The 23-year-old has been sentenced to life in prison, with a minimum term of 21 years.
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Judge Mousley KC told convicted Digwa that his actions stirred racial tension and caused concern within the Sikh community.
“You have brought shame on your family, your community and your religion. Your actions have stirred up racial tension, which has made many Sikhs worried about their safety,” Mousley said, according to The Guardian.
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