A set of police bodycam videos released in the UK shows officers handcuffing 18-year-old university student Henry Nowak after he reports being stabbed and struggling to breathe. Across multiple outlets, the footage is described as capturing Nowak on the ground telling police “I’ve been stabbed” and later saying “I can’t breathe,” while an officer responds “I don’t think you have, mate.” Reported context indicates Nowak is being arrested while the stabbing injuries are unfolding, and he subsequently dies after being stabbed.
The reports also say that some of the audio associated with the footage has been removed because it is distressing. The release of the videos has prompted public backlash in the UK, with the handcuffing and the officers’ responses to Nowak’s statements drawing criticism.
The coverage focuses on what is depicted and heard in the bodycam footage and on the controversy that follows its release, with no single outlet presenting a differing account of the central moments described in the videos.
