A Change.org petition to charge the police officers who were involved in the circumstances surrounding university student Henry Nowak’s death surpassed 200,000 signatures.Nowak, 18, was murdered last year by Vickrum Digwa, 23, who fatally stabbed him in the legs and heart with an 8-inch blade he claimed he carried as part of his Sikh faith. Digwa told police that he was the victim of a racist attack from Nowak, resulting in officers immediately taking the side of the murderer and rough-handling the dying Nowak, which may have contributed to his death.The release of police body cam footage showing Nowak’s final moments has ignited a firestorm of outrage in the United Kingdom, leading to a petition that’s garnered over 210,000 signatures as of Tuesday afternoon.
The petition, titled “Demand justice for Henry Nowak: charge the officers, publish the findings,” was first published last week. The text begins by recounting the damning conduct of police, such as their flippant and dismissive treatment of the dying student, all of which was captured on camera.
“The [Independent Office for Police Conduct] is investigating – but the officers are currently being treated as witnesses, not suspects,” the petition reads. “One has already resigned. The other three are still serving. That is not good enough.”
