New Delhi, June 6 -- LONDON - The Nowak family asked only that their son not be used as a weapon. By Friday, that wish had been overridden on two continents.

abandoned, handcuffed by authorities who neither trusted nor cared for him." Vance blamed the killing on what he described as the failure of European elites to stop the "mass invasion of migrants." The remarks, posted at length on X, transformed a domestic criminal case into a transatlantic diplomatic incident within hours.

Vickrum Digwa, 23, was sentenced to life imprisonment on June 1 after being convicted of murdering Nowak. The jury rejected Digwa's claim that Nowak had been the aggressor; prosecutors argued the allegation of a racist attack was fabricated to justify the killin...