University Expels Student Over Fake Social Media Account
A London university is facing a £98,000 lawsuit after expelling a student who was impersonated on social media. Sarah Mbabazi* was removed from her undergraduate degree at Richmond American University London in 2024 following complaints about posts on X concerning the Israel-Gaza conflict.
Mbabazi consistently maintained that the account was fake, created deliberately to cyberbully her by using a name similar to her actual social media handle. Despite her protests, the university found insufficient evidence to support her claim of impersonation and proceeded with expulsion for misconduct.
Investigation Flaws and OIA Intervention
The former student escalated her case to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA), arguing the university's investigation was fundamentally flawed. She highlighted that Richmond had failed to appoint a social media expert and did not properly examine digital evidence she provided proving the account wasn't hers.
The OIA upheld her complaint, noting the university hadn't adequately explained its reasoning for expulsion. Crucially, no written summary existed of the disciplinary panel meeting that decided Mbabazi's fate. The OIA demanded the university reconsider her case and review its disciplinary procedures.
Following this intervention, Richmond appointed a new panel which reached a dramatically different conclusion. The panel found "no evidence to prove that you were the author of the tweet" and cleared Mbabazi of breaching the student code of conduct.
Ongoing Fallout and Civil Claim
While the university has offered Mbabazi the chance to re-enrol and receive damages, she considers the compensation insufficient. She estimates her financial losses exceed £98,000, covering more than a year of self-support and potential career damage during the 18-month expulsion.
Mbabazi, who was already registered as a vulnerable student due to family estrangement and pre-existing mental health conditions, says her depression and anxiety significantly worsened due to the ordeal. She also reports experiencing considerable social stigma.
"They posted inflammatory tweets – their profile was a shot of my Instagram picture with a link to my Twitter profile and my name," Mbabazi explained. "One difference between my account and the impersonated account was mine had the letter T and theirs had L."
She believes the university failed to grasp that she was the victim, noting that online impersonation and catfishing are relatively recent phenomena that investigators might not fully understand.
Despite the university's reversal, Mbabazi has filed a civil claim in the county court, seeking full compensation and a formal apology she says she hasn't received. No hearing date has been scheduled yet.
A spokesperson for Richmond American University London stated they are "committed to maintaining fair and transparent academic and disciplinary processes" but declined to comment on individual cases.
*Name has been changed to preserve anonymity
