Professor Jason Arday, Cambridge University's youngest Black professor, has alleged a series of disturbing incidents, including receiving a pig's head at his parents' home, amid a dispute over plagiarism allegations. These claims have been publicly denied by the Metropolitan Police, who state that no investigation into such incidents has ever occurred.
Arday, 41, who was appointed to Cambridge at 37, has been the subject of plagiarism accusations that some critics allege are part of a cover-up, while supporters contend he is being targeted due to his race. He has admitted to making mistakes in his career but denies lying.
In an interview with The Guardian, Arday detailed experiencing physical abuse and intimidation. He alleged in an open letter to a government minister that he had been spat on, assaulted, threatened with a blade, and that he and his family had received rape and death threats. He also claimed to have received bullets and bananas on the university campus, and that poison and a pig's head were sent to his family's South London home.
Arday stated he intercepted the package containing the pig's head and later informed the police, who he claims investigated and found a local butcher had sold a pig's carcass on the day the delivery was made. However, the Metropolitan Police have stated these claims are "categorically incorrect" and that no such probe took place. The butcher reportedly stated officers did not visit them regarding a pig.
Further allegations from Arday include being confronted outside his faculty building by a balaclava-clad man on two occasions, who allegedly warned him to resign. On the second encounter, Arday claims the intruder threatened him with a knife. Enhanced CCTV and a panic alarm were installed in his office following the initial incident. Arday stated he used the panic alarm during the second incident but received no response. However, CCTV footage reportedly did not capture any intruder on either occasion, and witnesses present in the faculty building did not report seeing anything unusual. Arday did not report the incident at the time.
Since joining Cambridge, Arday has reportedly received death threats and correspondence suggesting he does not belong at the university. A Cambridge University spokesperson confirmed that enhanced security measures, including panic alarms, email and package screening, upgraded CCTV, and revised security protocols, were urgently implemented following Professor Arday's concerns, in consultation with university security and the police.
The plagiarism allegations against Arday resurfaced last month after a blog post by former Cambridge academic Nathan Cofnas, who had previously been dropped by the university for his controversial views on race.
An investigation by Liverpool John Moores University cleared Professor Arday of plagiarism claims related to his PhD thesis. However, Arday has since addressed questions regarding his fundraising claims, admitting he did not raise the reported millions for charity single-handedly. He had previously stated in a 2021 TED talk that he aimed to raise £1 million before turning 40 and had raised over £5 million by age 36. By 2024, this figure had risen to £5.5 million, according to a speech given in New Orleans.
Arday explained that the money was raised through a series of ultra-marathon events and that he was part of a syndicate of around 100 people who contributed over a two-decade period. He acknowledged that a reference on Southampton Solent University's website for one of his feats was updated to 12 days from six.
Critics have pointed to a lack of photographic or other evidence for some of his endurance feats, although he has photographic evidence of being a torchbearer for the 2012 London Olympic Games after running 30 marathons in 35 days.
His first documented fundraising effort in 2010, running 30 marathons in 35 days, generated £6,285 for the Shooting Star Children's Hospices, according to a JustGiving page. The charity confirmed he raised over £10,000 in total. He was photographed completing this challenge.
Evidence for his subsequent endurance claims is less clear. Reports from 2011 indicated he planned to run 300 miles on treadmills in three days for the charity Shelter. While a social media post suggests he started, no records of him finishing exist. A Facebook page dedicated to the challenge suggests it ended in failure due to his body's limits.
His most significant claimed feat, running 600 miles from Edinburgh to London in six days in 2015, has no photographic or contemporary records. Arday later clarified this was completed over 12 days due to rest needed from cumulative training wear and tear. Ultra-runner Damian Hall commented that while running 30 marathons in 35 days is possible, and 100 miles in 24 hours is achievable, the 600 miles in six days would be remarkable, and the apparent lack of evidence is unusual.
Arday was cleared of plagiarism by Liverpool John Moores University, which ruled that he received inadequate supervision and that citation issues were the result of "honest and reasonable error." He has spoken out against what he calls "insidious and relentless strategies" to discredit Black academics.
Supporters, including a petition signed by notable figures, argue that the allegations are baseless and suggest a pattern of undermining Black individuals in influential positions. The University of Cambridge stated that it takes allegations of academic misconduct seriously and that investigations are carried out by the institution where the research was undertaken, forwarding complaints to the relevant bodies.