Sikh killer flaunts deadly weapons years before he murdered student Henry Nowak and smeared him as a racist as he died

This is the moment a Sikh knifeman showed off his lethal weapons two years before killing a university student in the street, the Daily Mail has revealed.

Knife-obsessed Vikrum Digwa, 23, stabbed 18-year-old stranger Henry Nowak six times with a ceremonial Sikh knife he was carrying in Southampton city center last December.

The teenager did not know his victim but told the first officers on the scene a ‘bad lie’ about him and claimed Mr Nowak had racially abused him, punched him and knocked off his turban.

Officers immediately handcuffed the fatally injured student, who collapsed in the street moments later and drowned in his own blood.

MPs reacted angrily after Digwa was convicted of murder on Thursday, questioning how the killer could so easily trick officers into arresting his dying victim – a mistake described as a ‘shocking example of two-tiered policing’.

It can now be revealed that Digwa’s obsession with weapons was evident for several years before the fatal attack, with a video obtained by the Mail in 2023 showing him putting on a show with ceremonial knives at a Sikh event.

In the 30-second clip, Digwa is seen performing ‘Gatka’ with her elder brother Gurpreet.

Gatka is a Sikh arms show, and both Digwa and his brother have been described as Gatka’s ‘teachers’.

Sources in the local Sikh community said Digwa and his brother were briefly Gatka teachers, but they abruptly cut ties with him over concerns about his behavior.

In the 30-second clip, Digwa performs ‘Gatka’ along with her elder brother Gurpreet (blue picture).

Sources in the local Sikh community said Digwa and his brother were briefly Gatka teachers, but they abruptly cut ties with him over concerns about his behavior.

Vickrum Digwa, 23, was found guilty of murdering 18-year-old student Henry Nowak with an 8-inch ceremonial knife.

Mr Nowak was a finance student at the University of Southampton and was described by his family as ‘kind and talented’

In the video, shot in May 2023, he is seen arguing with knives and small shields in front of an audience at an event in London.

Digwa can be seen grabbing a knife and a shield from an array of weapons on the ground and using circular motions to thrust the knife into his brother’s shield.

The two, dressed in traditional Sikh attire and turbans, can be seen jumping from side to side and continuing to hit each other’s shields.

The footage will raise questions about whether enough was done to stop Digwa’s obsession with knives before it turned deadly.

Digwa faces a life sentence next week after being found guilty of ‘aggressively stalking’ Mr Nowak to death and stabbing him six times, including an 8cm deep wound in his chest.

The court heard Nihang Sikh slept in a bedroom with an ‘arsenal of weapons’ which he shared with his brother.

Digwa had a fascination with antique Sikh weapons and even described the murder weapon in ‘affectionate terms’ when asked.

The latest revelations come after Hampshire Police were forced to apologize to Mr Nowak’s family for arresting the fatally injured teenager.

Deputy Chief Constable Robert France told the Daily Mail: ‘I’m sorry he was handcuffed and arrested.’

There have been calls for the force to release body camera footage of the arrest, while the Independent Office for Police Conduct is investigating how officers acted.

Digwa used racism as ‘trump card’ by accusing Mr Nowak of racially abusing him when police officers arrived to arrest the wrong man

MPs condemned the police for the disastrous mistake.

Reform England leader Nigel Farage said: ‘This is the most shocking example of two-tier policing I have ever seen. Our policing system is broken. A Reform government will fix this.’

Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: ‘Police appeared more interested in handcuffing someone accused of making racist comments than saving a dying man. ‘They believed the attacker’s claims of racism without critical evaluation.’

The case sparked international outrage, with tech billionaire Elon Musk proposing to launch a special investigation against the police. This also raises questions about whether anti-racism training can have a devastating effect on police officers’ decisions.

The hearing heard Mr Nowak was in his first term at the University of Southampton and had gone for a night out on the town on December 3. The young man set out for his home around 23:00 in the evening.

Jurors were told he was talking to friends on Snapchat when he encountered Digwa, who was ‘carrying an extremely large knife in a sheath clearly displayed on his clothing’.

A video of two men talking was found on the phone found in Mr. Nowak’s killer’s pocket.

In the clip, Mr Nowak can be heard saying: ‘You’re a bad man, say you’re a bad man, move on.’

Digwa replied: ‘I am a bad man.’ The image was then cut.

After the fatal blows were delivered, Digwa ‘aggressively pursued’ his victim and filmed him trying to escape. His brother Gurpreet then arrived and called 999, claiming his brother had been ‘racially attacked’.

The police arrived shortly afterwards and at this point Digwa used his ‘trump card’ by accusing Mr Nowak of racism.

Prosecutor Nicholas Lobbenberg KC said it was a ‘bad lie about a dying man’.