@CPhilpOfficial , this case is horrific enough without distorting the documented evidence for political posturing.
The Police didnβt arrive to a clear-cut stabbing with an obvious victim. They arrived to a 999 call in which Digwa lied, claiming he had been racially attacked and insisting no weapon was involved. Officers walked into a scene framed entirely by the murderer β and with no other report to the country - that deception shaped the first few chaotic minutes.
Whilst Henry told officers heβd been stabbed, the wound wasnβt visible and the information they had suggested he was the aggressor. Itβs likely that this information informed their decision to initially handcuffed. Within three minutes, officers realised the truth, removed the cuffs, called an ambulance and began CPR. A pathologist has since confirmed the injury was unsurvivable.
The officers didnβt ignore him. They didnβt cause his death. And they didnβt cling to Digwaβs story once the facts started to unravel. They arrested him and others at the scene, gathered evidence to charge and ultimately prove his guilt and conviction for murder. The force has already apologised for the distress caused in those first chaotic moments.
The case has rightly been referred to the IOPC who will now conduct an investigation into the officers actions and decision making. Equally, the officers will advance their rationale and justifications for using handcuffs based on their reasonable beliefs at the time.
But turning a murdererβs calculated lie into a political argument about βfixation on raceβ is not supported by the evidence as reported during the trial. It should be obvious to most reasonable people, and Iβd include you as the shadow Home Secretary in this, that the officers were misled by a βwicked lieβ, not driven by ideology.
Henry Nowak deserves accuracy, not a narrative built on assumptions that contradict the verified timeline. Accountability is essential, as is the IOPC investigation β but so is honesty about what actually happened and what has been reported throughout the trial.
I am glad Vickrum Digwa has been convicted for the brutal knife murder of Henry Nowak, an innocent young man who did nothing to deserve being repeatedly stabbed by Digwa.
It is shameful that the police handcuffed Henry as he lay dying, especially as he told them he had been stabbed. The police seemed more interested in cuffing someone accused of making a racist comment than in saving a dying man. They believed his attackers allegations of racism without critical assessment. Henryβs last words were βI canβt breatheβ. If he had been an ethnic minority there would probably be protests and riots by now.
There needs to be an urgent IOPC investigation into what happened. The Force must apologise to Henryβs family and policing more widely should end on its fixation on race and alleged racism in the way it approaches policing.
bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c775β¦