A WARNING THAT THIS STORY MAY BE DISTRESSING FOR SOME LISTENERS Britain's interior minister has accused activists of hijacking a tragedy to stir up violence after the death of a teenager who was handcuffed as he lay dying - while his killer falsely claimed a racist attack. Nowak's death has triggered debates about policing and knife crime and has spurred claims by far-right activists and politicians that there is bias against white people in the justice system.
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TRANSCRIPT:
Henry Nowak: "I've been stabbed."
Police officer: "You've been stabbed? Whereabouts? Don't think you have mate."
What you have just heard is an excerpt from a video released by UK police into an attack on 18 year old Henry Nowak, who died after being stabbed in Southhampton last year.
It happened in December, but the story has received renewed attention because his killer has just been sentenced to life with a minimum of 21 years in prison, and the video has been released - kicking off debates about policing and racial tensions.
The man responsible is 23 year old Sikh Vickrum Digwa, who the court heard had falsely reported to police that he was the victim of a racist attack by Nowak, who was white.
Officers who arrived at the scene on a residential street in the southern England coastal city of Southampton appeared to take him at his word, handcuffing Henry on the pavement and not believing he'd been attacked.
Henry Nowak: "I can't breathe."
Police officer: "Put the hand in the cuff mate."
After the sentencing hearing, the victim's father, Mark Nowak had this to say.
"Henry should not have died on the streets of Southampton in police custody. The way he was treated was inhumane and degrading."
At the trial, Judge William Mousley acknowledged the case had stirred racial tension across Britain.
But the boy's father says the case wasn't about racism or religion, and he wanted his son's death to lead to safer streets and not be used to create further division or tension.
That's not what has happened.
This sound is from a video published on the UK Guardian newspaper website featuring ugly clashes between police and protesters at Southhampton.
Police say they were pelted with chairs, cans, rocks and flares by some of the hundreds at the demonstration.
The people at the protest included anti-immigration activist Tommy Robinson.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has called the street violence unacceptable, while Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said he was disturbed by the violence, despite the video raising legitimate questions about the police response.
"I have seen the body cam footage. It's harrowing. And I'll have to say, as a father of a 17-year-old boy, I felt sick watching it. It is absolutely right that the IOPC are looking at this. There are clearly serious questions that need to be addressed, not least how accusations of racism informed the decision making in this case."
Nigel Farage is the leader of the anti-immigrant Reform UK party.
He has sought to draw parallels of the teen's death with the 2020 killing of George Floyd in the United States which sparked the Black Lives Matter movement.
He has also argued the video is proof of what has been called 'two-tier policing'.
"I feel a sense of cold rage at the way that the police treated somebody who was stabbed, they didn't believe him. The last words on earth this man heard were his rights being read out to him, all because of a false accusation of racism."
But the PM says he thinks Nigel Farage's reaction is the wrong one.
He says while Nowak's death has triggered debates about policing and knife crime, it has also spurred claims by far-right activists and politicians that there is bias against white people in the justice system.
Critics say Farage's complaints about two-tier policing are a popular far-right talking point that claims ethnic minorities are better treated than white people.
The Prime Minister says the Reform UK leader needs to stop causing trouble.
"I start my answer to your question through the eyes of the family. They have said they do not want this whipped up. They have been through the most extraordinary, awful experience. They don't want this, whipped up and Nigel Farage is completely wrong to use this to try and create division."
Meanwhile, an investigation by the Independent Office of Police Conduct (IOPC) is underway into the police response.
The local Chief Constable Alexis Boon has told the BBC he will not resign, and that he was waiting for the outcome of the probe before making any further comment.
In a separate statement, the force has said one of the officers involved in the arrest has since resigned, while three others were being treated as witnesses in the investigation.
