Former Cambridge professor Jason Arday dies

Jason Arday, a former professor at the renowned University of Cambridge, is dead. The 41-year-old was discovered at an address in south London with no signs of life and was declared dead by rescue workers, several media outlets reported on Friday evening. The university later confirmed the 41-year-old's death. Just a few days ago he resigned due to serious allegations of plagiarism. The black academic's family made serious allegations.

The police said they were alerted by emergency services after a man was found unresponsive in a building in the Battersea district. "Unfortunately, the 41-year-old man was pronounced dead on site." The death was classified as unexpected. However, there is no reason to believe that a crime has occurred. As usual, the London police did not name any names - but according to media reports it was clear that the dead man was Arday.

That night, Arday's family also confirmed the death - and spoke of bullying and harassment in view of the allegations against the 41-year-old. "The disinformation campaign was simply too much for Jason," said a statement released through his publisher Simon & Schuster. "He was a gentle person who always wanted to see the good in everyone." The family was "deeply shocked by the loss of this wonderful father, partner, brother, uncle and son."

Family speaks of bullying and harassment

The university's vice-chancellor, Deborah Prentice, also said she was "deeply saddened by this tragic news." A short statement continued: "Our deepest condolences go out to the family and friends of Jason Arday at this incredibly difficult time."

The sociologist's resignation from his professorship last week caused great excitement in Great Britain. Arday rejected the allegations in a letter. The media reported, among other things, on allegations of plagiarism with regard to the professor's doctoral thesis at Liverpool John Moores University. The credibility of parts of his life story was also doubted (more on that here). An earlier investigation by the University of Liverpool found no academic misconduct, according to the PA news agency.

In his statement, Arday said that resignation was "the only way to end this chapter." This should not be understood as “approval of the representations”. According to the BBC, Arday also canceled several events.

The head of the University of Cambridge, Deborah Prentice, recently announced that an investigation into Arday would be carried out "independently by high-ranking scientists from Cambridge and outside." The university came under heavy criticism as a result of the case.