A mother told an Ontario courtroom her dying daughter’s final words were “I’m sorry, I drank it” as Kenneth Law’s sentencing hearing stretched across two days of victim impact statements.
Law, 60, pleaded guilty on Friday to 14 counts of aiding suicide in a Newmarket court, accepting a deal that reduced the charges from first-degree murder. The former chef had been arrested in May 2023 following a Times investigation published one week earlier that alleged he was distributing lethal substances globally through online suicide forums.
The court heard from more than 70 loved ones across approximately 40 countries, with many statements delivered in person and others submitted via video recording from abroad. The youngest victim was just 14 years old. Reports said that the United Kingdom received roughly a quarter of Law’s estimated 1,200 shipments, though UK prosecutors declined to bring charges against him.
“The only words she repeatedly said were, ‘I’m sorry, I drank it.’ Those words will remain with me for the rest of my life,” the mother of a 21-year-old victim said in her statement, describing how her daughter lay dying in her arms after ingesting substances from a package allegedly from Law.
Another relative described how her daughter’s body was so toxic that emergency officials were forced to wear hazmat suits simply to move her.
The Crown Prosecution Service agreed to the Canadian plea bargain on the condition that Law’s sentence account for British deaths. The CPS stated Law would not face UK charges because he could challenge extradition after a Canadian conviction under double jeopardy protections, which prohibit prosecuting the same offense twice.
Authorities allege Law met his victims through online suicide forums before shipping packages worldwide. While approximately 1,200 packages were sold, he faces charges only for Canadian victims. Reports said 79 British deaths linked to his substances.
The hearing adjourned after two days of emotional testimony that left many family members breaking down as they described their lives after their relatives’ deaths. Crown and defense attorneys are scheduled to return to court on November 27 for sentencing submissions.