Canadian man facing 14 murder charges to plead guilty to aiding suicide
[April 18, 2026]
TORONTO (AP) — A Canadian man facing murder charges for allegedly
selling lethal substances online to people at risk of self-harm has
agreed to plead guilty to counseling or aiding suicide, his lawyer told
the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. on Friday.
In turn, Canadian prosecutors will withdraw all 14 murder charges laid
against Kenneth Law, lawyer Matthew Gourlay told CBC News. |
York Regional Police Inspector Simon James speaks during a news
conference in Mississauga, Ont., Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2023, with the image
of Kenneth Law, a Canadian man accused of selling lethal substances on
the internet to people at risk of self harm, seen on screen. (Arlyn
McAdorey/The Canadian Press via AP, FIle) |
|
Law’s case is scheduled to return to a Newmarket, Ontario, court
on Monday afternoon.
Calls to Gourlay’s office and to Ontario’s Ministry of the
Attorney General were not immediately answered.
Canadian police say Law, from the Toronto area, used a series of
websites to market and sell sodium nitrite, a substance commonly
used to cure meats that can be deadly if ingested.
Canadian police say Law is suspected of sending at least 1,200
packages to more than 40 countries. Authorities in the United
States, Britain, Italy, Australia and New Zealand also have
launched investigations.
It is against the law in Canada for someone to recommend
suicide, although assisted suicide has been legal since 2016 for
people aged at least 18. Any adult with a serious illness,
disease or disability may seek help in dying, but they must ask
for assistance from a physician.
Law has been in custody since his arrest at his Mississauga,
Ontario, home in May 2023.
According to the Canadian Criminal Code, abetting suicide
carries a maximum sentence of 14 years. A murder conviction
automatically means life in prison, with no chance of parole for
at least 25 years.
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