Ex-Cambridge professor at centre of plagiarism row found dead

Former University of Cambridge professor Jason Arday has been found dead at a residence in Battersea, south London.

Emergency services were called to the address on Friday afternoon after Arday was found unresponsive. Metropolitan Police said the 41-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene, with his family notified.

Police said the death is being treated as unexpected but is not currently considered suspicious.

Arday, who was a professor of sociology of education at Cambridge, resigned from the university last week amid allegations of plagiarism and questions surrounding some of his academic achievements. He denied deliberately plagiarising but acknowledged errors in his work.

The controversy began after academic Nathan Cofnas, a former Cambridge academic, accused Arday of multiple instances of plagiarism and questioned some of the claims about his professional accomplishments.

Arday’s appointment in 2023 as Cambridge’s youngest Black professor was widely celebrated at the time. While some critics argued that the scrutiny he faced was influenced by racism, others maintained that the plagiarism allegations warranted investigation.

In announcing his resignation, Arday said the intense public scrutiny and criticism had taken a significant personal toll. He said the situation had gone beyond normal academic disagreement and affected both him and those close to him.

He also emphasised that his resignation should not be interpreted as an admission that the allegations made against him were true.

Source: BBC