A Sikh man jailed for murdering an 18-year-old pupil in Southampton had beforehand been reported to police over the alleged theft of ceremonial spiritual blades, the Each day Mail reported.Vickrum Digwa, 23, was sentenced to life imprisonment after being convicted of murdering Henry Nowak, 18, with an eight-inch kirpan in Southampton metropolis centre in December 2025.Members of Southampton’s Sikh group reportedly contacted police in July 2023 over the alleged theft of ceremonial Shastar blades value round £1,000.The blades have been allegedly taken from Gurdwara Khalsa Darbar in Southampton, the place Digwa and his brother had been educating Gatka, a conventional Sikh martial artwork involving weapons demonstrations.A supply on the gurdwara stated Digwa was dismissed as a Gatka teacher in August 2023 and was later reported to police over the alleged theft.“We dismissed him as a Gatka instructor in August 2023 after which I reported him to the police for stealing round £1,000 value of Shastar which was purchased with the group’s cash,” the supply advised the Each day Mail.No expenses have been introduced in reference to the alleged incident.Digwa’s mom, Kiran Kaur, 53, was additionally convicted of aiding an offender after prosecutors stated she eliminated the homicide weapon from the scene following the stabbing.Sentencing Digwa to life imprisonment, Choose William Mousley KC advised the defendant he had “introduced disgrace upon your loved ones and your faith”.The decide additionally stated he was happy that Henry Nowak had “stated nothing racist” in the course of the encounter, rejecting a key a part of Digwa’s account of the occasions main as much as the deadly stabbing.
