Six more charged after Southampton riots over Henry Nowak murder

Total number charged rises to 11 after protests that broke out following sentencing of man for murder of 18-year-old

Six more people have been charged with violent disorder in Southampton after riots broke out following the sentencing of a man for the murder of 18-year-old Henry Nowak.

It brings the total number of people charged after disorder in the city to 11. Kevin Reeves, 31, of Portswood Road, Southampton; Andrew Riddett, 38, of Seacombe Green, Southampton; Harry Varney, 34, of Briarswood, Southampton; Taylor Grundy, 22, of Pavillion Way, Gosport; and Dillon Crawford, 29, of Wilton Avenue, Southampton, were charged with violent disorder, Hampshire constabulary said.

Andrew Summerhayes, 38, of Banning Street, Romsey, was charged with violent disorder and two counts of possessing an offensive weapon in a public place, the force added. All of them were due to appear at Southampton magistrates court on Saturday morning.

The charges come after protests following the sentencing of Vickrum Digwa, 23, to life imprisonment with a minimum of 21 years for the murder of Nowak in December.

Anger erupted after police bodycam footage was released showing Nowak being placed in handcuffs moments before he became unconscious and subsequently died.

The evening had begun relatively peacefully outside Southamptont’s central police station but disorder allegedly began when hundreds of people marched across the city to the neighbourhood where Digwa lived and Nowak died.

By Wednesday morning, car windows had been smashed and bricks were strewn across roads.

The chief constable for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, Alexis Boon, said on Wednesday that 11 officers and a police dog had been injured while doing their job “to protect the communities that we serve”.

The Labour leader of Southampton city council, Sarah Bogle, said she believed a number of people had arrived from outside the city for Tuesday’s demonstration.

The far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, was among those who addressed crowds outside the police station during the protest billed as Justice for Henry Nowak. People chanted: “Racist police, off our streets” and “Shame on you”. They held union flags and homemade signs with slogans such as “Henry’s blood is on your hands”, “Save our kids” and “Prison 4 police on scene”.

Digwa, 23, stabbed Nowak, a student at the University of Southampton, five times. Police arrested and handcuffed Nowak after Digwa claimed he had racially abused and assaulted him.

After Digwa was jailed, Nowak’s father, Mark Nowak, condemned the “inhumane and degrading” treatment of his son by police, but said: “We do not want his death to be used to create further division, hatred or tension. We want his story to help make our streets safer for everyone.”

The treatment of Henry Nowak has triggered a political row. Reform UK’s leader, Nigel Farage, called for the public to respond with “pure, cold rage”, saying bodycam footage of Nowak’s treatment showed that the rights of minority ethnic Britons were given priority over those of white citizens.

Referring to Mark Nowak’s statement, the prime minister, Keir Starmer, told the Commons on Wednesday: “I think those words have resonated with people across the country. We must not allow this tragedy to be hijacked by anyone who seeks to divide us.”