London: The death of an Oxford don, Professor Steven Rawlings, at the home of another, Devinder Sivia, has sparked a murder investigation in the City of Dreaming Spires. The events are bizarre and could be taken from the long-running TV series, Inspector Morse, set among Oxford academics, in which the fictional character of the investigating officer was played by the late John Thaw.

Police were called late on Wednesday night to Sivia’s home in the pretty Oxford village of Southmoor where the body of Rawlings was discovered. Sivia, who is a mathematics don at St John’s College, was handcuffed and led away, according to neighbours who saw the arrest. He was later released on bail till April 18, the police said. It has been reported that Rawlings had a heart attack but the precise cause of death has not been established despite an initial post-mortem on Thursday.

It may take “weeks rather than days” to pinpoint the cause of death, the police in Oxford told us. Despite that, the police have started a murder investigation. What is odd is that according to all the evidence, Rawlings, 50, and Sivia, 49, had known each other for years and were “the best of friends”. They had collaborated on a highly regarded book, Foundations of Science Mathematics, printed in 1999. Daily Mail has reported that Rawlings “died of a heart attack after he was allegedly beaten up at the home of maths lecturer Dr Devinder Sivia”.

The paper said the police found the “battered body” of the professor. Rawlings lived with his wife Linda in Wantage, Oxfordshire, and the couple celebrated her 50th birthday last week. Sivia, a Sikh, is a bachelor.

A terse statement from the police yesterday said: “A post-mortem examination carried out on a 50-year-old man, who died at a house in Southmoor, Oxfordshire, yesterday (11/1), has proved inconclusive. Professor Steven Rawlings, of St Peter’s College in Oxford, was pronounced dead after police were called to attend a property in Laurel Drive at 11.22pm, following an earlier incident.”

The statement added: “A post-mortem examination carried out by a Home Office pathologist earlier today was unable to establish a cause of death at this time. Further examinations will be undertaken.”

Detective superintendent Rob Mason, from Thames Valley police’s major crime unit, added: “We are liaising closely with Oxford University and it is apparent that he (Rawlings) was well-respected and liked within the college and colleagues and students have been devastated by the news. It does appear that no one else was present at the address and we are not currently looking for anyone else in connection with this incident.”

Linda Davey, 64, Rawling’s older sister, told The Daily Telegraph: “They have been friends for 30 years. We can't think that there was any kind of fight. We can only assume that it was a terrible accident. Steven was big, but he was gentle.” Meanwhile, tributes have been paid to Rawlings.

The vice-chancellor of Oxford, Professor Andrew Hamilton, said in a statement: “The entire university community has been profoundly saddened and shocked by the tragic and untimely death of Professor Steve Rawlings. Our thoughts are with his family and friends.”

The Master of St Peter’s College, Mark Damazer, who was controller of BBC Radio 4 before taking up his current post, also spoke warmly about his academic colleague. He said: “Steve was elected to his fellowship in 1994, having initially been employed by the college for two years as lecturer in mathematics. He undertook his undergraduate and doctoral studies at the University of Cambridge, and remained there to do post-doctoral work prior to moving to Oxford. Steve held his St Peter’s fellowship in conjunction with a university lecturership in astrophysics, later becoming professor.”

Damazer also said: “He was head of the sub-department of astrophysics of the University of Oxford from 2006 to 2010. He was one of the lead scientists in the international Square Kilometre Array (SKA) project and also played a prominent role in the redevelopment of the Goonhilly Satellite Earth Station in Cornwall as a radio astronomy facility. He was a much-liked and admired tutor and colleague within the college and will be greatly missed. We extend our deepest sympathy to his wife Linda.”

Sivia has taught “maths for natural sciences” to chemistry and physics undergraduates for a number of years. His research interests revolve around Bayesian probability theory — mathematics for inferring, or reasoning, using probability. The Daily Mail has added a certain amount of detail, unconfirmed by the police, to what happened on Wednesday night. There had apparently been a row between the two friends.

“A neighbour is said to have tried to save the dying man’s life by desperately pumping his chest,” according to the Mail. “But minutes after officers arrived, Dr Sivia —who was dressed all in white — was led away in handcuffs.”

Family liaison officers broke the news to Rawlings’s wife, who identified her husband’s body at the mortuary of John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford. Dr Tony Lynas-Gray, research assistant in Oxford University’s astrophysics department, commented: “Devinder Sivia was a great friend of Stephen Rawlings. Stephen talked about Dr Sivia and said what a great person he was. Stephen Rawlings was a great man and a great astronomer. We’re entirely devastated.”

Last night dozens of tributes to Professor Rawlings were posted on the Internet by colleagues and past students. Stanislav Zavjalov wrote on Facebook: “No!! Horrible! I still remember his explanation of the divergence theorem using the wildebeest. May he rest in peace.”

- The Telegraph