Nephew of woman who died by euthanasia slams ‘outright lie’ of Swiss clinic who claims it got family blessing
Wendy Duffy's nephew told Tom Swarbrick that the assisted dying clinic's claims are 'impossible'
The nephew of a woman who died by euthanasia after struggling to cope with the death of her son has accused the Swiss clinic of “lying” when it claimed it had secured the blessings of her four siblings.
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Wendy Duffy, 56, a former care worker from the West Midlands, paid £10,000 to end her life at Pegasos in Switzerland, after the death of her 23-year-old son, Marcus, four years ago.
Wendy’s nephew, also named Marcus, is demanding answers after discovering the news of her death through social media.
Pegasos says Wendy’s family had been informed, a claim which Marcus has rejected as an “absolute outright lie”, in an interview with Tom Swarbrick.
Tom asked: “The clinic says that they contacted four siblings, that those 4 siblings have been informed, and I'm quoting here the clinic's founder, quote: ‘They gave their blessings’. Is that true?”
“No”, Marcus responded. “Absolute outright lie”.
Read more: Grieving mum, 56, ends her life at Swiss assisted dying clinic
Marcus went on to explain that when his mother, Wendy’s surviving twin sister, found out the news, she contacted her other siblings, who were “just as shocked”.
“They had no idea,” he went on. “It's impossible that they could have had the blessings, or any type of support, from four siblings – especially her twin.”
Marcus went on to explain that despite the shock of the news, he doesn’t blame Wendy for her decision.
“My auntie was depressed, and she took her own life, and I don't blame her for it because she was mentally ill.
“But that in itself should have excluded her from being able to do it.”
Marcus says he’s “not against assisted suicide” in cases of severe degenerative diseases but believes it needs to be limited to cases “where there is no alternative treatment available”.
“By virtue of trying to commit [suicide], in itself, is evidence of a mental illness”, he explained.
Marcus believes that the clinic should disqualify people who suffer from mental illness from the voluntary assisted dying process.
“Companies that are taking them on should have a duty of care to this person, to ensure that they do seek the alternative treatment,” he said.
While there is no suggestion that Pegasos has broken Swiss law, Wendy's family have raised their concerns with both Swiss and British police.
LBC has contacted Pegasos for comment. Pegasos previously told LBC that they are unable to respond to Wendy's family's claims due to medical confidentiality. Pegasos says it is "committed" to helping adults "capable of judgment can exercise their right to a self-determined death in dignity", and has always complied with Swiss law.
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