In an emotional Ontario courtroom this week, survivors and grieving relatives from Canada and the United Kingdom have confronted former chef Kenneth Law, a man who built a global network selling toxic substances to vulnerable people he connected with in online suicide forums. The four-day sentencing hearing has opened a raw window into the widespread harm caused by Law’s illegal trade, which has been linked to nearly 80 deaths in the UK alone.
Elisabeth Belien, a 23-year-old British survivor who had never been publicly identified as one of Law’s customers before Wednesday, delivered a harrowing impact statement describing how Law exploited her deepest mental health despair. When Belien was at her lowest point in January 2023, Law sold her lethal toxic chemicals. Medics successfully administered an antidote that saved her life, allowing her to recover physically, but she told the court the psychological damage remains permanent.
“I continue to struggle with intrusive thoughts and flashbacks of that day,” Belien said, addressing Law directly as he sat in the glass‑panelled dock. She opened up about the crippling survivor’s guilt she carries, after learning from investigators that dozens of other customers who bought toxins from Law died. “I feel guilty for surviving. I feel like my vulnerability was exploited. I still feel a lot of shame about what happened,” she added. “I also feel guilty that by purchasing from him, I enabled him to continue supplying other vulnerable people just like me.”
Belien noted that while she is slowly learning to hope for the future, the trauma of her encounter with Law has not faded. “Being here today reminds me how easily it could have been my parents standing here talking about me, instead of me speaking for myself,” she said. “The gratitude I feel for being alive doesn’t take away from the trauma of what happened.”
Law, a former Canadian chef, has accepted responsibility for 14 counts of aiding suicide in Canada, as part of a plea deal reached with Canadian authorities. Under the terms of the agreement, Law will not face any additional charges in the United Kingdom, even though investigators have linked approximately 80 British deaths to his illegal operations. Despite this arrangement, the court is allowing families of British victims to submit and read impact statements during the sentencing proceeding to share how their lives have been forever altered.
International law enforcement authorities estimate that Law sold roughly 1,200 packages of toxic substances to customers across 40 countries, with roughly 25% of those shipments destined for addresses in the UK. He was arrested in May 2023, following a sprawling, multi‑national investigation that coordinated the work of at least 11 law enforcement agencies from more than a dozen countries, including the UK, Italy, and the United States.
Among the grieving family members who shared their pain this week was David Parfett, whose 20‑something son Tom died after purchasing poison from Law in October 2021. Parfett told the court that he has never been able to fully process his son’s death, and that his entire personality has shifted since the tragedy. “I was previously gregarious and outgoing, but five years later, I still cannot fully process what happened,” he said. Parfett explained that he delayed his own grieving to push for accountability and to expose how unregulated online platforms allowed Law to operate his deadly trade undetected.
The parents of 14‑year‑old Henry Tucker, another British victim who died in 2021, also shared their devastating story. The couple explained that their son had been misdiagnosed with autism, when he actually suffered from a treatable neurological condition that could have been managed with antibiotics. “The realisation that his suffering and death could have been prevented is a weight that is impossible to bear,” they said in their read statement. “The death of a child under these circumstances is a burden we will carry for the rest of our lives.”
Norson Harris, father of British victim Ashleigh Harris, appeared in person to describe the agony of losing his daughter. “Rather than offer her the help she desperately needed, Kenneth Law sold her the chemical she used to end her life,” Harris said. “We all feel we should have been able to prevent her death. I still hope that over time, Mr Law will come to recognize that he should have told all the vulnerable people who reached out to him that they were loved, and that help was available.”
Canadian families also delivered searing testimony. Stephen Mitchell Sr., whose son Stephen Mitchell Jr. died in March 2023 after purchasing toxins from Law, told the court his son was ill and seeking help, and Law robbed him of any chance to recover. Addressing Law directly, Mitchell Sr. said he accepts that Law may have experienced moments of despair and worthlessness during his incarceration — the exact same feelings his son had before buying the lethal chemicals. “When my son was well, he would have gladly helped Law work through his depressive thoughts, because he believed in the value of every person,” Mitchell said.
Sandra Scott, whose 25‑year‑old daughter Amara Scott died in February 2022 while her family was actively helping her through a mental health crisis, said their efforts were cut short by Law. “In her most vulnerable state, she made contact with the accused,” Scott said. “The day my friends and I found Amara, the way she died — it broke my heart. It was a blessing and an honour to be Amara’s mother.”
The sentencing hearing is ongoing. For anyone affected by issues of mental health or suicide raised in this reporting, support resources are available through BBC Action Line in the UK and local mental health services in Canada.