Vickrum Digwa, 23, who was jailed for life last month for the murder of 18-year-old student Henry Nowak, has denied possessing a large cache of weapons at his family home in Southampton. The weapons discovered included machetes, ninja swords, flick-knives, knuckledusters, an extendable baton, and other martial arts weapons.
Digwa appeared at Southampton Magistrates’ Court facing seven counts of possessing offensive weapons and pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Family members also charged include Digwa’s father, Moga Singh, 52, and brother, Gurpreet Digwa, 27, both from Southampton. They face the same charges and have pleaded not guilty. Gurpreet additionally faces extra counts related to offensive weapons found in a vehicle and possession of an air weapon, which he denies.
The alleged arsenal found at the family home reportedly includes:
- Three machetes
- Thirty-seven swords, including three ninja swords
- Two flick-knives or gravity knives
- Eight knuckledusters
- An extendable baton and a manriki-gusari martial arts chain
All offences are said to date from 4 December 2025, the day after Henry Nowak was killed.
Henry Nowak was fatally stabbed by Digwa during a night out in Southampton last December. The unarmed first-year student was walking home when Digwa took his phone, leading to a brief struggle. Digwa then used a dagger, which he carried as part of his Sikh faith, stabbing Henry multiple times, including an 8cm wound to the chest.
Upon police arrival at the scene, Digwa falsely claimed that Henry had attacked him and used racial abuse. Despite Henry’s visible stab wounds and his pleas recorded on police body cameras, officers initially dismissed the severity of his injuries. Two Hampshire Police officers are currently under investigation for potential gross misconduct related to their handling of the incident.
A trial date has been set for 27 September 2027, following a case management hearing in June. Digwa is serving a life sentence with a minimum term of 21 years, while his mother, Kiran Kaur, 53, faces sentencing for assisting an offender.
Originally published by UKNIP.
