Jason Arday: Ex-Cambridge Professor Found Dead After Plagiarism Row

Jason Arday, the former University of Cambridge professor who resigned last week following plagiarism allegations, has been found dead in Battersea, south London. Emergency services were called to an address in the area on Friday afternoon, where a man was found unresponsive. The Metropolitan Police said his death was being treated as unexpected but not suspicious. Arday was 41 years old.

Family Statement: Campaign of Misinformation

In a statement, Arday's family said they were in shock to have lost their amazing father, partner, brother, uncle and son. They added: the campaign of misinformation was too much for Jason, who was a gentle man and who always wanted to see the best in everyone. Cambridge University vice-chancellor Professor Deborah Prentice expressed deep sadness, while Education Secretary Lucy Powell said she was deeply shocked and urged people to remember there are real people with loved ones involved.

The Plagiarism Controversy

The scandal began after academic Nathan Cofnas, who had himself been sacked from Cambridge in 2024, alleged he had found numerous instances of plagiarism in Arday's work. Arday denied the claims outright but acknowledged some errors in his early academic work, attributing them partly to his autism. He said he had relied on mimicry to make sense of information. His resignation came amid what he described as an unrelenting level of public scrutiny and personal attack that had followed the allegations.