Scandals

Jason Arday, the Cambridge professor who resigned after being accused of plagiarism, has died, according to the university.

In a statement Friday, Deborah Prentice, the Vice-Chancellor Professor at the University of Cambridge, confirmed Arday's death, saying "we are desperately saddened to hear this tragic news" and "our heartfelt sympathies go to Jason Arday’s family and friends at this incredibly difficult time."

The Metropolitan Police in London said officers responded to a man's home Friday afternoon after receiving a report that he was found unresponsive. Police declared the man dead at the scene and notified his next of kin without releasing Arday's name publicly.

Nick Reiner is calling BS on the executor of his trust ... telling the court he didn't give any consent to withhold money from him he says was owed to him under the terms of the trust when he turned 30.

Reiner filed a new legal document on Friday in which he says successor trustee Jodi Pais Montgomery's claim that he told a past trustee he'd leave the money in the account as "trust property" isn't true.

He also says the claim that his mother, Michele Reiner, told a previous trustee that he knew he could take the money when he turned 30 and therefore was consenting to leave it in the account when he didn't remove it is also not valid consent ... because he didn't authoritze his mother or anyone to make such a statement.

The California couple who are fighting their surrogate, McKenna West, for custody of their baby boy are slamming Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton for helping out McKenna ... TMZ has learned.

In court docs filed in Texas, Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed, the parents fighting for their biological baby, called out Paxton for interfering in the case.

Nausheen and Omar say the state's request to intervene and get authorization for medical treatment for the child would deprive them of their "fundamental constitutional interest in the care, custody, control and medical decision-making for their child without constitutionally adequate notice, process, and opportunity to be heard … in violation of the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution."

Surrogate McKenna West says she knows a person who was born with the same heart defect as Baby Gabriel ... and she claims they are now a "thriving teenager."

According to court documents obtained by TMZ, McKenna says the baby was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, just like Gabriel ... and they underwent at least three surgeries.

The docs say McKenna's maternal-fetal-medicine specialist got in contact with the biological parents to explain to all three of them how approximately 70% of children with HLHS live beyond their fifth birthday.

The specialist made it clear McKenna would need to travel out-of-state to successfully deliver this child ... and that's exactly what she did.

McKenna West says she couldn't go through with terminating her pregnancy, despite Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed insisting she do so ... even though she previously stated she talked it over with a psychologist and was willing to do so if they wanted it done.

A new legal filing includes the surrogacy agreement the parties signed back in August 2025 ... and one section clearly states there "shall be a termination of the pregnancy for a fetal abnormality" upon request of Gilkar and Ahmed.

As we reported ... the baby, who West named Gabriel, was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome -- a congenital heart defect -- during the 20-week fetal scan.

The 13-year-old boy in Arizona facing a misdemeanor assault charge over a gym class dodgeball game says he never meant to hurt anyone ... but admits he's nervous about going to court.

Abel Schipper and his mom, Cecily, joined us on "TMZ Live" Friday ... and he insisted he never tried to hurt his ex-girlfriend when he and two friends threw foam dodgeballs at her during a warm-up.

Abel says the kids were throwing at random classmates before targeting his ex ... and denies they scrunched up the foam balls to make them hit harder. As for her large bruises, Abel says he has no idea how they got so severe.

McKenna West claims she was facing the threat of a six-figure fine under her surrogacy contract if she didn’t abort the baby she was carrying for a California-based couple ... TMZ has learned.

We obtained the lawsuit McKenna filed against Worldwide Surrogacy over the baby she was carrying for Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed. As we've previously reported, the parents wanted the baby aborted due to health issues doctors found.

McKenna refused and gave birth on August 12 in Texas to a baby boy she named Gabriel ... which the couple says is not the child's name.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton spoke out in favor of McKenna ... and took steps to ensure two Texas hospitals would provide medical care.

McKenna West -- the surrogate who ran off to Texas to have a California couple's baby without their consent -- will have absolutely no authority over the baby to whom she gave birth, this according to legal docs obtained by TMZ.

We've obtained a copy of the temporary restraining order obtained by the biological parents of baby Gabriel -- the name which West gave the baby -- and it strips her of any decision-making with respect to the child's care.

The TRO states she cannot make any medical decision on behalf of Gabriel, exercise any possession of him, represent herself as his parent, guardian or medical decision maker, or sign any document on behalf of him.

Lindsay Clancy's toxicology report identifies four prescription medications in a blood specimen collected from her on the day she allegedly murdered her three kids ... and now you can read through the findings.

The report, obtained by TMZ, was admitted as evidence in court during her murder trial in Massachusetts.

It says blood taken from Clancy identified lamotrigine, mirtazapine, quetiapine, and trazodone -- prescription medications used to treat mental health conditions like depression, bipolar disorder, and sleep issues.

An attorney for Nolan Wells' family says they're ready to examine his phone ... but they're waiting on the Jackson County DA's Office to set the date.

Liza Park -- a member of Ben Crump's team -- said Thursday the DA's office, the family's forensic team and possibly the FBI have agreed to jointly download and examine the device.

The plan, according to Park, is to examine the phone one time with everyone present ... but they're still waiting for prosecutors to provide the time and place.

One of Nolan Wells' friends is calling out the late teen's mother ... saying her social media posts were at least partially responsible for some of the hate being thrown their way.

In a new interview on "The Officer Tatum Show", YouTuber Brandon Tatum sat down with Nolan's so-called best friends Morgan Seymour, Warren Hudson, and Jax Pitalo ... asking the boys straight-up how they think the coverage surrounding Nolan's death should have played out.

Jax claims that -- aside from wishing "Nolan could still be here" -- "his mom blasting us on social media from the get-go" triggered a huge media frenzy.

A traffic stop in Arkansas went off the rails when a state trooper threw an 18-year-old woman to the ground and punched her ... it's on video, and now her attorney wants answers.

Dashcam footage from the August 1 stop shows Trooper Moisses Arellano ordering Alisa Hackett to place her hands on the trunk and take two steps back ... he then asks her to put a hand behind her back, and suddenly he's body slamming her to the pavement and punching her.

She repeatedly asks, "Sir, what did I do?" ... but within seconds, Arellano forces her to the ground and mounts her as she screams, asks to call her mother, and protests her arrest.

Nolan Wells' friends say they wish they had never gone to Horn Island on the Fourth of July ... believing Nolan would still be alive if they had stayed home.

TMZ obtained exclusive clips from the group's sit-down with YouTuber Brandon Tatum and their attorney, J. Tyler Cox ... ahead of the full interview dropping Monday on "The Officer Tatum Show" ... and his friends talk regret, race and more.

Warren Hudson, Jax Pitalo and Morgan Seymour open up about the tragedy and the allegations that followed ... including claims race played a role in Nolan's death.

Mark Zuckerberg is taking some heat for his yacht not giving any assistance to a skiff that ran out of fuel ... but the Meta CEO says there's nothing to see here.

The drama reportedly began last Monday night when a cruise ship took a detour to help out the 21-foot skiff in Southeast Alaska.

Michael Love, one of the cruise ship's passengers, wrote on social media that the captain announced Zuckerberg's yacht was actually closer to the skiff, but did absolutely nothing to help.

Nolan Wells' friends set out Friday to Horn Island after launching an investigation of their own into the death of the teen ... and the visit was intense.

Warren Hudson and Jax Pitalo took their lawyers, J. Tyler Cox and Edward Andrew Paltzik, to inspect the Mississippi barrier island ... and a realization hit them like a ton of bricks.

Cox tells TMZ ... things got raw for the boys ... "The trip was tough for Warren and Jax because that’s the last place they saw their best friend. A couple of times we had to pause and give them their space.” He pointed out one of those places included the site where Nolan’s body was discovered.

With all the mystery around Nolan Wells' death, TMZ decided to bring in the big guns to try and figure out who's telling the truth.

We sat down with body language expert Susan Constantine to get her take on Warren Hudson's recent interview with Brandon Tatum ... and she thinks there's definitely something he's not telling us.

After watching a clip of Warren insisting "no one touched Nolan's phone," Susan said her assessment indicated he was being deceptive.