Aus lecturer in Asian sleaze row kills self

Melbourne:

A 46-year-old law lecturer of a top Australian university in Melbourne has reportedly committed suicide, after it emerged he allegedly solicited and received bribes in the form of sexual favours and money from some female Asian international students for improving their marks.

Before police could interrogate the lecturer at the Victoria University he is believed to have committed suicide apparently overdosing on drugs at his home.

Police were preparing a brief including 10 bribery charges when they contacted the man in early May. They asked him to go to a police station and recommended he take a lawyer. Two days after the call he was found dead.

His death and the bribery allegations have shocked colleagues at the university, where he had taught for several years. The man, who is said to have been divorced, had recently suffered financial losses.

"I was shocked and bewildered," a former colleague told The Australian. "He was a great colleague."

It is believed the university uncovered the allegations in December and referred them to police. It is understood the Asian students themselves were never considered suspects in the investigation, instead being treated as victims.

The revelation comes at a sensitive time for Australia's university sector, which is already bracing for a downturn in international student demand next year following a spate of racial assaults on Indian students.