Until I get the book by Andrew Rippin I can only speculate.

Nonetheless, Todd Lawson did find some muslims who defined MUTAWAFIKKA as death. But even those muslims who thought that jesus had died, they still believed that jesus was never put on to a cross, they also believed that Allah caused the image of Jesus to be cast on another individual. They also belived that jesus would physically return in the end days.

I am willing to bet anything that Imam Maliki believed that Jesus never went on a cross, his face was cast upon another, then Jesus escaped, Allah caused Jesus to die (somehow), and he will physically return in the ends days.

I am confused as to why HMGA and m. ali never pointed this out to me, i.e. the total beliefs of Imam Maliki.

I will soon post the mufassirs who thought that Jesus had died, I remember that this is what the one Mutazali scholar wrote.