Court of Appeal · England and Wales · November 5, 2026
Vickrum Singh Digwa will face a longer minimum term before he can be considered for release for the murder of Henry Nowak. On November 5, the Court of Appeal increased the headline minimum of his life sentence from 21 to 25 years, the Attorney General’s Office announced. The judges rejected Digwa’s own bid to reduce his sentence.
Nowak was 18, a first-year university student walking home in Southampton on December 3, 2025. He was killed after encountering Digwa. A jury convicted Digwa of murder and possessing a bladed article. Judge William Mousley KC sentenced him at Southampton Crown Court on June 1, 2026. The published sentencing remarks are the place to start for the original findings and the arithmetic behind the term.
One case, two challenges to the sentence
Attorney General Ellie Reeves referred the sentence under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme, asking the appeal court to increase it. Digwa argued that his sentence was excessive. A defendant asking for a reduction and the Attorney General asking for an increase can put the same sentencing decision before the court from opposite directions. This hearing concerned the punishment for the existing conviction; it did not ask a jury to decide guilt again.
The panel was led by Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr, sitting with Mr Justice Nicklin and Mr Justice Wall. The judges concluded that the original term understated the seriousness of the offense. Sky News’s report from the appeal describes the court’s treatment of Digwa’s decision to film the aftermath and its impact on Nowak.
What the 25 years means
The 25 years is the minimum before release may be considered, subject to credit for time already served on remand. The Times reported that the 175 days of credit leave 24 years and 190 days from the June sentencing date. This is why the judgment can be reported as a 25-year minimum and also as a slightly shorter period measured from the date of sentencing.
A minimum term does not promise release when it expires. As the government’s guide to life sentences explains, the Parole Board considers whether release is safe, and a person released from a life sentence remains subject to a life licence. The decision changed the earliest point for consideration. The life sentence stands.
For more cases from England and Wales, see the UK crime collection and the Courtroom archive.
File photograph: Royal Courts of Justice, London, October 8, 2016. Photo by Fred Romero, CC BY 2.0. Original photograph · License. Re-encoded for display.