Published: | Updated:
The decision not to charge the brother of Henry Nowak’s killer after he falsely accused him of racism and being the aggressor was today branded ‘incredible’.
A leading lawyer believes Gurpreet Digwa should have been prosecuted for perverting the course of justice at the very least.
Marcus Johnstone, of PCD Solicitors, said evidence at the trial of Henry's killer Vickrum Digwa also suggested his brother may have committed perjury, assisted an offender and obstructed police.
But the Daily Mail can reveal that Hampshire Police did not ask the Crown Prosecution Service to consider any case whatsoever against Gurpreet over Henry's murder.
Gurpreet Digwa watched as police handcuffed fatally injured Henry, who had been stabbed six times with an eight-inch Sikh ceremonial sword on December 3, 2025.
Gurpreet had told police 'we've been racially attacked by a white person' before officers wrongly arrested Henry as he lay dying, 999 audio revealed.
He said: 'We are restraining him now because he has attacked my brother and taken his turban off and he was recording some “s*** on his phone.'
But claims Henry had launched a racist attack were later revealed to be a 'wicked lie'.
Marcus Johnstone told the Daily Mail: ‘There is no doubt Gurpreet Digwa has likely committed one or more criminal offences in assisting his brother to cover up Henry Nowak’s murder.
‘The judge referred to Vickrum Digwa and his mother both perverting the course of justice. It seems incredible his brother was not also charged.
‘This reflects extremely badly on the police.’
Gurpreet Digwa called 999 and told police: We've just been attacked racially by some white person' after his brother had stabbed Henry Nowak six times with a Sikh ceremonial sword
Police officers pinned fatally injured Henry to the ground as he gasped 'I've been stabbed' and 'I can't breath'. Gurpreet had said Henry was the aggressor
Henry was a finance student at the University of Southampton and was described as 'kind and talented' by his family. Critics have said that his treatment before he died revealed ‘two-tier’ justice in the UK
It comes as Vickrum Digwa’s jail term is set to be reconsidered under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme, amid claims the case shows ‘two-tier’ justice.
An online petition is calling for Gurpreet to be reinvestigated.
Although never charged, he was at the centre of the case that saw his younger brother convicted of murder.
Gurpreet had called 999, falsely claiming Henry had racially abused him and his brother.
‘We’ve just been attacked racially by some white person,’ he said.
Gurpreet, himself, 'may just have been accepting that which [Digwa] told him', judge William Mousley KC later said, but he added that he was 'sure' Mr Nowak never said or did anything racist.
Gurpreet had also insisted to the 999 operator there were ‘no weapons’ involved - despite both brothers carrying Sikh ceremonial knives.
'I don’t know what weapons they would be, he said.
He added: 'The guy has fallen over because he looks like he’s drunk'.
After Henry died, both brothers were arrested.
Vickrum continued to claim he was the victim of a racist attack.
Officers later placed the siblings together in a police van, where their conversations were covertly recorded.
Speaking in Punjabi, Vickrum admitted to stabbing Nowak multiple times, including in the chest.
The brothers appeared to agree on claiming Henry was stabbed in self-defence.
Neither of them mentioned racism during the conversation, despite repeatedly telling police they were victims of racist abuse on the night Henry was stabbed to death.
Yet Hampshire Police never asked the CPS to charged Gurpreet over the case.
Officers only sought charges against Vickrum and his mother, who has admitted perverting the course of justice, the Daily Mail has learned.
Critics say the failure to pursue Gurpreet further fuels claims of ‘two-tier’ justice.
Henry's godmother Kelly Hatchard said the family had been 'subjected to sit in a room with the monster who brutally murdered their son and watch the lies spill so easily from his mouth'.
She added: 'His last moments were not only spent so afraid of the monster who attacked him, but he was then wronged and let down by the police officer who I have no doubt Henry assumed was there to help him.
'Shame on you all. You treated a loving, caring, intelligent, hardworking young man with such disregard and disrespect.'
Vickrum Digwa was given a life sentence with a minimum of 21 years in prison for the murder
Murderer Vickrum Digwa is seen lying to police as he tells them the teenager ripped off his turban in a racist attack. It was revealed to be a 'wicked lie'
Mr Johnstone said Gurpreet Digwa could potentially have faced offences including perverting the course of justice, assisting an offender and wasting police time.
‘If police failed to send a file to the CPS, this reflects extremely badly on them,’ he said.
He added the judge’s sentencing remarks pointed to Gurpreet’s involvement.
Judge William Mousley KC told Vickrum: ‘Your brother did much the same.’
‘You joined your brother in relating these lies to the police', he added.
Referring to the covert recording, he added Vickrum had ‘decided… to try to cover it up’.
Mr Johnstone said: ‘If Gurpreet was the only other party, it follows he was also covering up what happened.’
Hampshire Police has defended the decision not to submit a file to the CPS on Gurpreet.
A spokesman said: ‘Investigators kept an open mind and considered all relevant offences… The offences charged were laid after careful review of all the available evidence.’
此内容由惯性聚合(RSS阅读器)自动聚合整理，仅供阅读参考。 原文来自 — 版权归原作者所有。