Kenneth Law charged with 14 counts of 2nd-degree murder in multiple Ontario deaths
Accused poison seller Kenneth Law has been charged with murder in connection with multiple deaths across Ontario, CBC News has learned.
A charge sheet from the Ontario Court of Justice in Newmarket shows Law was charged Monday with 14 counts of second-degree murder, in addition to the 14 counts of counselling or aiding suicide that he was already facing.
The new charges are related to the same alleged victims in multiple Ontario cities, from Toronto to Thunder Bay. CBC News has previously reported on the deaths of two people linked to the investigation — Stephen Mitchell Jr., 21, from Toronto and Ashtyn Prosser, 19, from Windsor, Ont.
Law, who is a 58-year-old man from Mississauga, Ont., was first arrested in May after Peel Regional Police investigated two local deaths. Police have previously said Law's alleged victims in Ontario range in age from 16 to 36.
Police allege that beginning in late 2020, Law operated several websites that were used to sell sodium nitrite and other items that can be used for self harm. Investigators have said that Law allegedly sent at least 1,200 packages to people in more than 40 countries.
CBC News has reached out to Law's lawyer Matthew Gourlay for comment.
Peel Regional Police have scheduled a news conference for Tuesday morning.
No charges laid abroad
Official records and statements along with media reports and interviews with families conducted by CBC News suggest Law's projects may be linked to 117 deaths worldwide.
He has not yet faced any charges abroad in connection with his online businesses. However, there is evidence an FBI investigation in the U.S. is progressing.
Police in Pennsylvania previously told CBC News an investigation into the death of a teenager in that state has been handed over to the FBI to probe for any links to Law. Gerald Cohn, whose brother Benjamin died by suicide in February, said he met with FBI agents from Chicago last week, regarding the case.
The FBI said earlier this year that "as a matter of a longstanding policy, the FBI neither confirms nor denies the existence of an investigation."
