A bitter academic dispute that engulfed Professor Jason Arday in his final weeks has now triggered disciplinary action at a Belgian university, with the scholar who levelled the plagiarism allegations saying he has been suspended.
Prof Arday resigned from his role at the University of Cambridge this month after he came under intense scrutiny over accusations of plagiarism first raised by fellow academic Nathan Cofnas.
Mr Cofnas — who has advocated for “race realism” — is a postdoctoral researcher in Ghent University’s department of philosophy and moral sciences, according to his website.
Writing on X on Thursday, Mr Cofnas said: “I am under investigation by my university for discriminating against Arday.”
In another post, he added: “I was just suspended by Ghent University. They will almost certainly fire me.”
Ghent University confirmed the suspension and said Prof Arday’s death “should prompt reflection”, adding that the institution “opposes discrimination, hatred and racism”.
The Belgian university said it supported academic freedom and open academic debate, but stressed that “that freedom is not unlimited” and must go “hand in hand with responsibility” as it announced it was taking unspecified action concerning Mr Cofnas.
I was just suspended by Ghent University. They will almost certainly fire me.
The decision was made by rector Petra De Sutter, a former leader of the Green Party.
— Nathan Cofnas (@nathancofnas) August 20, 2026
In a joint statement on yesterday, Ghent University rector Petra De Sutter and vice-rector Herwig Reynaert said: “Ghent University stands for respect for human dignity and opposes discrimination, hatred and racism.
“We attach great importance to academic freedom and to open academic debate, even when views are controversial. However, that freedom is not unlimited.
“It goes hand in hand with responsibility and may be restricted in order to protect the rights of others.
“For this reason, the university takes the recent public statements made by a postdoctoral researcher at Ghent University regarding this matter very seriously.
“Ghent University has decided to take appropriate action within its powers and the applicable framework.”
The rector and vice-rector said that while it was “important to be transparent”, they did not want to “pre-empt any potential decisions at this stage”.
They said Ghent had been “shocked” by Prof Arday’s death and that their thoughts remain with his family, friends, colleagues and students.
A spokesperson for Ghent said in an update: “Ghent University formally notified the staff member concerned of the launch of a preliminary disciplinary investigation.
“As part of this process, the university is assessing whether there are sufficient grounds to refer the case to the competent disciplinary body for further consideration.
“Pending this preliminary investigation, Ghent University has suspended the staff member as a precautionary measure.
“The university cannot comment further on the specific details of the disciplinary case or the underlying arguments, in order to safeguard the confidentiality of the personnel file and the disciplinary proceedings.”
Prof Arday, who became Cambridge’s youngest black professor in 2023, was found dead in Battersea, south London, last Friday.
Earlier this week, organisers said more than 30,000 people had attended a vigil for the 41-year-old in Trafalgar Square, central London.
Speakers at the vigil criticised the press coverage of Prof Arday, with MP Diane Abbott saying he was subject of a “vicious” and “bitter” campaign by people who did not believe a black man should be a Cambridge professor – describing the press coverage of Prof Arday as a “public execution” and a “lynching”.
Mr Cofnas has been contacted for comment.
