Cambridge professor Jason Arday is facing fresh scrutiny after police contradicted his claim that officers investigated the alleged delivery of a severed pig's head to his family home, while the University of Glasgow has also rejected a claim contained in his official Cambridge biography.
The latest revelations deepen a growing controversy surrounding the sociology of education professor, who is already embroiled in an international plagiarism scandal after analysis of his PhD thesis allegedly identified more than 180 identical or near-identical passages matching another student's work.
Professor Arday previously claimed in newspaper interviews that a severed pig's head had been delivered to his parents' home in south London as part of a campaign of racist intimidation following his appointment as the University of Cambridge's youngest Black professor in 2023.
He reportedly said he intercepted the package before later informing police, who he claimed investigated the incident and even traced the purchase of a whole pig from a local butcher. However, the Metropolitan Police has now confirmed it has no record of any report involving a pig's head, no record of any investigation and no evidence that officers visited butcher shops in connection with the allegation.
The butcher identified by Professor Arday also reportedly told journalists that police had never visited the premises, saying it was the sort of incident staff would have remembered. According to reports, Professor Arday was unable to produce photographs of the alleged package or messages discussing the incident with family, friends or police.
Further questions have also emerged over claims that he was twice confronted inside his Cambridge faculty building by a masked man, including one alleged incident in which the intruder reportedly threatened him with a knife if he did not resign. The incidents were reportedly never reported to police at the time, colleagues were not informed, and no suspicious individual was captured on CCTV. When questioned about the allegations, Professor Arday reportedly responded: "To be honest with you, I thought you'd just believe me. Why would I lie? I can't make people believe me. Nobody lives their life having a receipt for every single thing they say or they've done."
Meanwhile, a further discrepancy has emerged involving Professor Arday's official academic biography. The Herald reported that the University of Glasgow denied he had ever held a visiting professorship there, directly contradicting a claim previously contained on his University of Cambridge profile.
Cambridge University has declined to comment on the specific allegations but has continued to back Professor Arday, describing him as the victim of a "vile campaign to undermine his credibility."
