( CNN ) -- Bo Guagua , the son of embattled Chinese Communist cadre Bo Xilai , has issued a statement defending his actions and his academic record following allegations his college `` party boy '' image had contributed to his father 's fall from grace . In a statement posted on The Harvard Crimson -- the Website for the daily newspaper at Harvard University where Bo , 24 , is a graduate student -- he said he wanted to answer some of the charges leveled against him ; among them that he did poorly academically , that he entered prestigious colleges because of his connections and that he drove a red Ferrari to pick up a date . But he was reluctant to comment on his father , who has been stripped of his political posts , and his mother , Gu Kailai , who is in custody as a murder suspect in the death of British businessman Neil Heywood . Insider 's take on China 's great drama . `` I am deeply concerned about the events surrounding my family , but I have no comments to make regarding the ongoing investigation , '' he said . The president of The Harvard Crimson Ben Samuels told CNN he was confident the statement was genuine , adding that its website was crashing because its server was overloaded . He said he presumed the server was struggling due to traffic from China and had not been hacked . In the statement , which was laid out in a series of bullet points , Bo denied rumors his connections had gained him places at some of the world 's most exclusive schools . Bo 's 'party boy ' son under scrutiny . `` My tuition and living expenses at Harrow School , University of Oxford and Harvard University were funded exclusively by two sources -- scholarships earned independently , and my mother 's generosity from the savings she earned from her years as a successful lawyer and writer , '' he said . Bo also defended his academic record , saying that he had gained straight As in his school A-level exams when he was 18 and gained a 2:1 ( second class , first honors ) in Politics , Philosophy and Economics at Oxford University in England . He added that he had achieved a First in the Philosophy component of the degree . Photographs of a bare-chested Bo at college balls had presented a `` party boy '' image , but he defended his attendance at the functions as a normal part of college life . `` During my time at Oxford , it is true that I participated in 'Bops , ' a type of common Oxford social event , many of which are themed , '' he said . `` These events are a regular feature of social life at Oxford and most students take part in these college-wide activities . '' He added that he had been involved in a not-for-profit social networking site in China aimed at assisting `` NGOs in raising awareness of their social missions '' and connecting with volunteers . `` I have never lent my name to nor participated in any for-profit business or venture , in China or abroad , '' he added . Another widely reported story alluding to a lavish lifestyle suggested Bo had once arrived at the U.S . Ambassador 's residence in Beijing in a red Ferrari to pick up a daughter of Jon Huntsman , the ambassador at the time , for a dinner date . `` I have never driven a Ferrari . I have also not been to the U.S. Embassy in Beijing since 1998 ( when I obtained a previous U.S. visa ) , nor have I ever been to the U.S . Ambassador 's Residence in China , '' Bo said in the statement . `` Even my student visas were issued by the U.S. Consulate in Chengdu , which is closer to my home of five years . '' Bo ended with an appeal to the media . `` I understand that at the present , the public interest in my life has not diminished . However , I wholeheartedly request that members of the press kindly refrain from intruding into the lives of my teachers , friends and classmates , '' he said . Rumors over his allegedly flamboyant college lifestyle have played poorly in China where his father , the former Chongqing kingpin , promoted a revival of Maoist-style `` red culture , '' while pursuing a widely publicized -- but brutal -- crackdown on organized crime in the city . One family associate told CNN recently there was little sympathy in China for what many regard as the typically spoiled offspring of the Communist Party elite .
Bo Guagua issues a statement in The Harvard Crimson defending his record . Son of Bo Xilai answers charges he did poorly academically at school and university . - July 26 -- Also denies he had driven a red Ferrari , part of allegations he led a lavish college lifestyle .