Henry Nowak's family say Hampshire Police 'manipulated' them and first claimed officers gave the dying student first aid
Henry Nowak and his father, Mark Nowak, whose mother Lucy did not learn of his death until 1am, when officers knocked and told her there had been an altercation.Video shows Henry Nowak's killer handing his mother the murder weapon. Vickrum Digwa also told officers at the scene that Henry had racially abused him, prompting police to handcuff the dying student for eight minutes.
Henry Nowak's family have accused Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary of telling them — in the weeks after the 18-year-old student was stabbed to death in Southampton — that officers had immediately given him first aid, before later admitting he had in fact been handcuffed and placed under arrest as he lay dying. Stepmother Katie Nowak says she fears 'decisions were made to try and protect the police and their reputation rather than help us as a family.' Father Mark Nowak says the story was 'evolving every time we had an interaction' and that the family 'felt hoodwinked.'
The revelations come in an ITV documentary, 'Dear Henry: Our Fight For Justice', airing this Thursday.
Police initially suggested Henry was the aggressor, not his killer Vickrum Digwa, who was jailed for life with a minimum 21-year term in June.
The family also claim the police watchdog told them in April there was 'no evidence' of misconduct — before they saw bodycam footage at Digwa's trial weeks later.
