A teenage boy who spent his final moments on a gravel car park repeatedly told police he had been stabbed, his voice breaking as he struggled for breath and tried to stay conscious in a scene later described as deeply harrowing in court.
Henry Nowak, 18, can be heard on body-worn camera footage saying “I have been stabbed” and “I can’t breathe,” as Hampshire Police officers attempt to establish what has happened in the chaotic aftermath of a violent confrontation in Southampton.
Despite his repeated pleas, one officer can be heard responding: “You’ve been stabbed, mate? I don’t think you have,” a remark that has since drawn widespread scrutiny after the full context of the incident was played out in court.
GB News hosts Patrick Christys and Carole Malone were left in tears.
This body cam footage is extremely shocking.
You can hear Henry Nowak’s pleas about being unable to breathe.
And you can hear how the police dismissed them and failed to take action to try to save his life.
This is not just about knife crime. This is about police failure, poor…
— Suella Braverman (@SuellaBraverman) June 1, 2026
Patrick said: “They read him his rights, they handcuff him, they drag him around the gravel. They say, ‘I don’t think you’ve been stabbed’.
“They don’t care, do they? They listened to that bloke who we now know is the murderer, they say, ‘Have you been hurt?’ and he goes, ‘Yeah I’ve got a bit of swelling on my eye’.
“The first thing those police officers heard when they got to that scene was that this guy had been swaying from side to side, couldn’t prop himself up and was bleeding, and they didn’t care.”
He said: “What a horrible, horrible way to die. Those police officers, they need to be prosecuted without question.”
An emotional Carole Malone added: “I have never seen anything like that. I’ve never seen anyone die on camera before.
“His parents have had to see that time and time again. They saw it in court. They will live with that memory all of their lives.
“They have to live with seeing that their son could have been helped, maybe even saved. And they’re listening to the idiot and the people around him who did it.”
She added: “I hope Keir Starmer watches that tonight and weeps in the same way everyone in this studio is weeping, because it’s the worst thing I’ve ever seen.
The footage, released by Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary, shows Nowak lying face down on gravel while officers detain him and engage with others at the scene, including Vickrum Digwa, who would later be identified as his attacker. Digwa is heard making claims that Nowak had racially abused and assaulted him.
The exchange, unfolding in real time beside a critically injured teenager, has left viewers and commentators shaken, not least because of the stark contrast between what Nowak was telling officers and how his condition was initially interpreted.
What a brave Dad.
He deserves justice from the police officers who disgracefully failed his son.
Our institutions – and politicians – didn’t care about his death because he was white.
Henry Nowak’s case must be a turning point. pic.twitter.com/ghfVsheGa7
— Robert Jenrick (@RobertJenrick) June 1, 2026
At one point, Nowak is seen struggling to remain conscious, his movements slowing as officers continue to speak with those present. The severity of his injuries becomes increasingly apparent only as the situation develops.
He would later die from his wounds.
For those present in court and those who have since viewed the footage, the most haunting aspect is not only the violence of the attack itself, but the sound of a young man attempting, repeatedly, to explain that he was dying.
The case has already become the subject of intense public debate, with attention focused on the split-second decisions made by officers arriving at a fast-moving and confused scene where competing accounts were being given.
Legal proceedings continue to examine the sequence of events, including how responsibility for the fatal injuries is ultimately determined and whether earlier recognition of the severity of Nowak’s condition might have altered the outcome.
But beyond the courtroom arguments lies a far more difficult image to process: an 18-year-old asking for help in his final moments, and the tragic failure of circumstances to align in time to save him.
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