Kenneth Law pleads guilty to aiding suicide as murder charges are dropped

Ontario‑based Kenneth Law, 60, is expected to plead guilty in Newmarket court to 14 counts of counseling or aiding suicide. Law ran several websites that sold sodium nitrite and related “suicide kits” to buyers in more than 40 countries. Canadian authorities allege the kits were linked to at least 130–150 deaths worldwide, including 14 deaths in Ontario between 2021 and 2023. The Crown will withdraw all 14 first‑degree murder charges, which had been pending alongside the suicide‑assistance charges. Under Canadian law, a conviction for aiding suicide carries a maximum sentence of 14 years, while a murder conviction would have imposed life imprisonment without parole for 25 years. The plea deal was reached after years of joint investigations by Ontario police, the UK National Crime Agency, US, Australian, Italian and New Zealand authorities. British prosecutors have decided not to seek extradition, opting to let the Canadian sentencing address the UK victims. Families of victims in Canada and the UK have called for a public inquiry into how the online operation evaded regulation. Sentencing is slated for later this year.