Violence erupted on Tuesday night as riot police remained stationed near to the Southampton home of Henry Nowak’s killer Vickrum Digwa
Violence erupted on Tuesday night(Image: Jamie Lashmar/PA Wire)
Southampton community leaders have accused the far right of encouraging people to the city to ‘fuel’ violence to further their own agenda following the murder of Henry Nowak.
John Savage, a Labour representative for the Portswood ward of Southampton City Council where the disorder took place, described the violence as ‘absolutely outrageous’, adding that it occurred against a backdrop of long-standing protests against a hotel in the area used to house asylum-seekers.
Violence erupted on Tuesday night (June 2) as riot police remained stationed near to the Southampton home of Henry Nowak’s killer Vickrum Digwa, who has now been convicted of murder. The 23-year-old was jailed for life on Monday after being convicted of murdering 18-year-old Nowak as he walked back to his student accommodation last December. He was stabbed five times.
Click here to get the biggest stories straight to your inbox in our Daily Newsletter
The circumstances around the death which saw Mr Nowak handcuffed have seen politicians clash, with Reform UK leader Nigel Farage calling for the response to be ‘pure, cold rage’. Meanwhile, Sir Keir Starmer has said he ‘felt sick’ watching the footage and said there are ‘serious questions’ to answer about the case.
Chairs, cans and flares were thrown at officers in riot gear, forcing them to retreat on Tuesday. Videos on social media, including on X, showed violence rapidly developing, with bricks and flaming wheelie bins also hurled towards the line of officers.
Following the violent scenes, John Savage said: “We really need to wait for the outcome of the IOPC (Independent Office for Police Conduct) investigation, we can’t make any judgement based on seeing a couple of seconds of a video, however distressing it is.
Riot police were called out in Southampton (Image: Jamie Lashmar/PA Wire)
“Most people are really upset by it, they really care about what happened in the last minutes of a poor 18-year-old student’s life, but it doesn’t warrant the violent, disrupting, damaging behaviour we saw last night, we need to wait to find out what happened.”
Mr Savage described Portswood as a ‘progressive’ area with many students and university staff living there and said he believed most of the demonstrators were from other parts of the city as well as elsewhere in the country. He said: “It’s absolutely outrageous, these are people who have been bussed in from other places to cause mayhem in our city.”
Adding: “Mark Nowak, Henry’s father, clearly stated that he didn’t want anything to cause further division and tension in the area and that’s exactly what has happened it seems they are doing it for their own aims, their own agenda and it’s not welcome here.”
Sarah Bogle, the Labour leader of the city council, said that she believed a number of people had arrived in the city from elsewhere for the demonstration which started outside the city’s central police station and which was attended by political activist Tommy Robinson.
She said: “They were pretty awful scenes last night and very unwelcome to see that level of disturbance in what is normally a very quiet neighbourhood.”
Calling for calm to allow the IOPC investigation to conclude, she said: “It’s very very distressing to see what’s happened and it’s such an awful tragedy and I really want to respect and support the principles of Henry Nowak’s family’s wishes to dial down the rhetoric, dial down the tensions, and keep the peace and keep people safe and to honour his memory.
“It’s a huge tragedy for him and his family and it’s awful when these tragedies are weaponised by people who should know better, whether it’s politicians or the far right – it really is unwelcome.
“People have the right to protest, which is fine, but to actually then go and just basically cause distress, I mean people couldn’t even get home that evening, that’s really not acceptable.”
On Tuesday, members of the protest were seen running through the streets, some bleeding, as the chaos continued. A police helicopter was filmed hovering overhead as officers were pelted with stones on the residential street.
Officers came under attack during the demonstration(Image: Jamie Lashmar/PA Wire)
Demonstrators were heard chanting “Henry, Henry” as the line of police clutching riot screens were pelted with the bricks, chairs and other items. Fires were also started, with some lit items placed in large waste bins that were pushed into the line of officers.
Chief Constable Alexis Boon, of Hampshire Constabulary, said that those involved in the disorder had been ‘determined to spark fear and division’. He said: “What we, as a society, cannot accept is the violent scenes we saw in Southampton last night.
“Some clearly arrived intent on causing disorder and trouble. We saw bottles thrown, makeshift weapons used, damage caused to the homes and vehicles of innocent residents and threats and violence directed towards our officers. As a result, 11 officers and one police dog were injured, while trying to do their job to protect the communities that we serve.
“My officers bravely and robustly faced violence with professionalism and courage last night and this morning our investigation is under way to identify those responsible for the disorder. Last night, we made two arrests and that number will rise as those investigations continue.”
Mr Boon added: “I know that since the release of the body-worn video footage from the night of Henry Nowak’s murder, there is a desire for answers and accountability but that must be done in the right way and not used as an excuse to threaten and intimidate my officers and bring violence to our streets causing fear and harm to those living and working in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.”
As Darren Paffey, Labour MP for Southampton Itchen, said: “This was not a lawful and peaceful protest. Instead, it was the grotesque and cynical spectacle of a young man’s death being used to whip up division, inflame tensions, and provoke criminal disorder. Henry’s family have said that they do not want his death to be used to create tension.
“Most of us in Southampton will rightly choose to respect the wishes of a grieving family while allowing the proper processes to run their course. Those who don’t are wrong. The violence and disorder we saw yesterday can never be justified and should not be repeated. And to those who choose to come to our city and hijack this tragedy to stoke hatred: you are not wanted here.”
Satvir Kaur, Labour MP for Southampton Test, said: “It was incredibly distressing to witness events play out in Portswood last night.
“At a time when a family and community are in mourning, we should be coming together, not stoking division and pitting communities against each other.”
She added: “What happened to Henry was horrific. There are clearly serious questions to be answered, and we must all continue to raise concerns and work together to ensure something like this can never happen again.
“But it is important that we do so calmly and allow due process to be followed. Violence and disorder are never justified.”
The MP, who is a practising Sikh, told Sky News on Wednesday that she has received an “excessive amount of abuse”, as she criticised the actions of those who “should be showing leadership”.
Ms Kaur said: “I have received an excessive amount of abuse. This isn’t about me, this is about Henry Nowak, his family, and getting justice and ensuring that questions are answered. But, as a practising Sikh, is it really tough right now? Yes, it is.”
She added: “Here, it’s raising community tensions, throughout the country, particularly at a time when people that should be showing leadership are using it to sow divisions and hatred and pit one community against another.
“In this country, we don’t do collective punishment. One person’s evil act does not represent the entire community but there’s particular individuals that are looking to penalise entire communities who are really scared and worried right now.”
