Families' fury as Canadian man who sold 'poison suicide kits' to 286 people in the UK won't be extradited
Bereaved families have told LBC of their outrage after it emerged Kenneth Law won't face justice in the UK
Bereaved families have told LBC they are "infuriated and really disappointed" that a man who supplied "poison suicide kits" linked to the deaths of their loved ones will not be extradited to the UK.
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Kenneth Law pleaded guilty to 14 counts of aiding suicide at a court in Canada on Friday but despite the kits being linked to the deaths of more than 100 British people, authorities have confirmed they won’t seek his extradition.
British authorities believe the 60-year-old would have been able to challenge any extradition request due to “double jeopardy" laws – meaning he will have already been convicted of similar offences in another country.
But bereaved families in the UK have slammed the decision to incorporate their relatives into the wider Canadian case.
The sister of 21-year-old Aimee Walton, from Southampton, who died in 2022, told LBC that "doors have been shut" for families seeking justice.
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Adele Zeynep Walton said: "It's really disappointing for me as a sister.
"It's infuriating. And I know that all the other bereaved families feel the exact same.
"He needs to be extradited here. He needs to hear from the people that he has impacted.
"He needs to stand in a UK court and be held to account for the crimes in this country. I think it's lazy to piggyback off the decision in Canada.
"It's really hard to preserve the positive, incredible, inspiring moments of Aimee’s life at a time when we are still fighting for justice.
"We have still not had her inquest yet. She died nearly four years ago and we are now fighting for this public inquiry.
"So, sadly, until I think we get justice, I won't be able to cherish those moments and preserve those memories of her."
David Parfett, the father of philosophy student Thomas Parfett, who died aged 22 after taking his own life in Sunbury-on-Thames, Surrey, added: "For months, we have been told that the system is working and that existing measures are enough.
"They are not. If our own country will not put anyone on trial for these deaths, the very least it can do is hold a proper inquiry into how they were allowed to happen."
Since opening its investigation in April 2023, the NCA has worked with 45 police forces across the UK to gather evidence on Law’s offending.
Specialist CPS prosecutor Andrew Hudson told reporters that “no victim has been left behind as part of this process”, adding that including British victims will “ensure that the full devastating extent of his criminal conduct is seen and considered by the sentence in court."
Law was also investigated by police in the United States, Italy, Australia and New Zealand.
Andy Burrows, chief executive of Molly Rose Foundation, said: "Bereaved families have been campaigning tirelessly to hold Kenneth Law to account in the UK and to be told he will not be prosecuted here on the eve of his court case in Canada is a bitter blow.
"Families up and down the country have been impacted by Law’s crimes and should have the right to full justice in the UK.
"As long as the pro-suicide forum remains online, and while this substance is available in the UK and across borders, more vulnerable people are at risk."