Jason Arday found dead after Cambridge plagiarism scandal

Former Cambridge professor Jason Arday has been found dead in south London, Cambridge University said, days after he resigned amid plagiarism allegations.

Arday, 41, was found unresponsive on August 14 at an address in Battersea, according to London's Metropolitan Police Service. Police did not identify the man but said he was pronounced dead at the scene. They said the death was being treated as unexpected but was not believed to be suspicious, and that a file would be prepared for the coroner.

Cambridge Vice-Chancellor Deborah Prentice said the university was "desperately saddened" and offered sympathies to Arday's family and friends.

Arday resigned on August 5 from his post as a Cambridge professor and as a fellow of Jesus College after the university and college announced investigations into accusations against him. Some academics and media reports had accused him of plagiarising parts of his doctoral thesis.

In an online letter announcing his resignation, Arday said leaving was "the only way" to end a difficult period, but said the decision should not be taken as acceptance of the claims around him.

Arday became Cambridge's youngest black professor in 2023. In an interview with The Times earlier in August, he admitted making academic "mistakes" but said he was being wrongly portrayed as an academic fraud. He also alleged that the campaign against him was racially motivated.

Prentice had said on August 12 that the alleged wrongdoing was "an aberration" and promised a thorough and transparent investigation, including into the circumstances of Arday's appointment and time in post.