The president of the House of Representatives plagiarized her thesis, says the Externado de Colombia University

(CNN Spanish) – The Externado de Colombia University reported this Monday in a statement that, after months of investigations, it was determined that there was plagiarism in the thesis of the master’s degree in Government and Public Policy of Jennifer Arias, president of the House of Representatives.

The text of the thesis was subjected to a computer tool to detect plagiarism. “This operation produced a significant number of coincidences with sources or documents published on the internet by authors other than Arias Falla and Largo Alvarado,” the document reads.

After the discovery, the Externado University hired an expert in copyright and intellectual property to confirm or dismiss the case, who concluded that “the amount of texts reproduced literally (slavish plagiarism) or deliberately paraphrased where the simple suffices is evident. reading to deduce the way in which such fragments arrived at the analyzed degree work ”, explained the expert.

According to the University, the only possible explanation for the coincidences found is “the existence of an infringing reproduction or copy of Copyright”.

CNN has tried to reach Arias, so far without success.

On Monday night, the congresswoman rejected the accusations of the Externado University through your Twitter account. “I am innocent and I have not committed any plagiarism. The university has never listened to me, has never asked me absolutely anything, ”he said in a video. He added that the academic institution ensures that it does not have the original version of his thesis, so he questioned the procedure.

“Who guarantees me that the document on which they did the research is the original document of my thesis?” Said Arias. Finally, he expressed his confidence in justice, where he says that he will show that there was no plagiarism.

For its part, the Externado University also reported that it will go to the State Council and the Supreme Court of Justice and the Attorney General’s Office with the evidence to request that the master’s degree of Arias and his thesis partner be annulled. .

Fernando Ramos contributed to this report.