Henry Nowak’s sister pays tribute as family demand return to ‘common sense’ | Politics | News

Henry Nowak’s family have called for a return to common-sense policing (Image: Joe Giddens/PA Wire)
Henry Nowak’s family want a return to “common sense” policing where everyone is treated equally, Kemi Badenoch said.
The Tory leader said the murdered teenager’s relatives agreed to release the police bodycam footage of his final moments because they want “truth, accountability and change”.
Mrs Badenoch met with Henry’s mother, Lucy, Father, Mark, and stepmother Katie and admitted trust in the police has been lost.
She hailed their “extraordinary” courage as she called for political and religious leaders to come together to “rebuild trust in the police”.
And the 18-year-old’s family repeated calls for peace after violence erupted in Southampton, with officers pelted with bricks, bottles, bins, cans and even an e-scooter.

Kemi Badenoch wants to see change (Image: Getty)
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said: “They have faced the agonising decision to release the harrowing body-worn camera footage, knowing how painful it would be and how strongly people would react. They did so because they want truth, accountability and change. They have asked that we work across political parties and religions to rebuild trust in the police.”
Mr Nowak was arrested and handcuffed as he lay dying while his killer, Vickrum Digwa, who had stabbed him five times, was treated as a victim by officers. Digwa had falsely claimed he had been subjected to racial abuse.
Mrs Badenoch added: “That trust has been broken because of what happened, and I agree with them on that.
“We must also be prepared to examine, carefully and seriously, religious practices or exemptions that permit the carrying of dangerous weapons in public, and other activities that are not conducive to the public good. We also need to examine where the law needs to change.
“Henry’s family do not want anger to tear communities apart. They are a family who have friends across faith and race, and so did Henry.
“His family want his memory to help bring our society together. Everyone knows I have strong views about how we should deal with equality under the law.
“What the family agreed with me on is that we need to bring common sense back, and that is what we should all be fighting for. I promised the family that we will work to ensure there is a positive legacy for Henry out of this tragedy.”
It comes as Olivia Nowak, Henry’s older sister, paid tribute to her brother on social media with a series of emotional pictures and videos.
The 22-year-old wrote: “I’ll miss you and I’ll love you forever. Forever 18, my brother”.
The clips showed them dancing and singing and celebrating together at family events such as weddings and birthdays.
A second post on the social media site TikTok showed the pair at various points of their lives. Olivia captioned the post with: “Never felt pain like this. Forever my best friend. Fly high my angel brother.”
Police chiefs are reviewing anti-racism guidance which advises officers to treat ethnic minorities differently.
It states: “Our commitment to racial equity means producing equality of policing outcomes for people from different ethnic groups by responding to individuals and communities according to their specific needs, circumstances and experiences, with the understanding that these will be racialised … It does not mean treating everyone ‘the same’ or being ‘colour blind’(racial equality).”
But sources close to the Home Secretary said the wording is “clumsy”.
The Chief Constable of Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary, Alexis Boon, on Wednesday apologised for his officers “handcuffing and arresting Henry” as the teenager begged for help after being stabbed five times by Vickrum Digwa.
But he insisted the 18-year-old was not treated differently because of his race.
And Chief Constable Boon said the officers who handcuffed Mr Nowak after he was falsely accused of racism are no longer on frontline duties.
The Prime Minister has urged politicians to heed Mr Nowak’s relatives’ calls not to use the case “to cause disturbances”, as he accused Elon Musk of trying to “whip up division” in the UK over the murder, and after he branded Nigel Farage’s response “unforgivable”.
The Prime Minister told reporters during a trip to York on Thursday: “We need to also assert who we are as a country, because Musk, again, has been interfering in our politics in the last few days, trying to whip up division – that is not who we are in Britain.
“In Britain, we are reasonable, tolerant people.
“When we have a terrible case like Henry’s case, Henry Nowak, we react calmly, as his family have done.”
“In Britain, we are reasonable, tolerant people.
“When we have a terrible case like Henry’s case, Henry Nowak, we react calmly, as his family have done.”
Mr Musk has criticised on his social media platform “how heinously Nowak was treated by the police in his dying moments and how the police cravenly kowtowed to his murderer” and what he described as the media’s silence about the case after writing “about George Floyd millions of times”.
It is not the first time the tech tycoon has waded into British politics, having last year started a war of words with the Government over grooming gangs and thrown his support behind activist Tommy Robinson.
The Conservatives, whose leader Mrs Badenoch has called for an end to “two-tier policing”, have said the officers who arrested Mr Nowak on false racism claims should face a full misconduct investigation.
Asked about the Tories’ demand, Sir Keir said “there are questions that need to be answered” over the police response, and added that the Independent Office for Police Conduct should be given space to “get on with their job” in investigating the case.
“I think it’s right that there may need to be changes and we shouldn’t shy away from that,” the Labour leader said.
“But we really need to listen to Henry’s family, because they’re asking us, as politicians, as leaders, not to use his case to whip up division, not to cause disturbances. We have to listen to them.”
