Police sought to intercept packages sent by Kenneth Law after learning of alleged poison seller, docs show

Investigators urgently sought to "track and intercept" packages – believed to contain suicide kits – shipped around the world by a Toronto-area man in the days before his May 2023 arrest, according to a police affidavit obtained by CBC News.

The document provides a glimpse into the frantic, early efforts by Peel Regional Police to probe Kenneth Law's online businesses and prevent more deaths allegedly tied to Law's products. Police accuse Law, 59, of running now-defunct websites that sold a toxic salt and other suicide paraphernalia to individuals at risk of self-harm. 

He's since been charged with 14 counts of first-degree murder and 14 counts of counselling or aiding suicide in connection with 14 deaths across Ontario, in what authorities have called "one of the largest murder cases ever charged in the province."

Law's products are suspected of being connected to more than 100 additional deaths elsewhere.

Law has denied wrongdoing. His lawyer, Matthew Gourlay, has said his client will be pleading not guilty when Law's trial is set to begin in September 2025.

The newly obtained – and highly-redacted – 137-page affidavit outlines evidence gathered in the case. Known as an "information to obtain" (ITO), the undated document was sworn by a Peel police officer and released on Monday evening, months after CBC News and The Globe and Mail filed a court application for access to such exhibits.

The ITO appears to suggest the Peel police investigation gained urgency after James Beal, a journalist with Britain's Times of London, emailed them on April 6, 2023, inquiring about Law — then a resident of Mississauga, in Peel Region, west of Toronto. Beal was working on a newspaper report and podcast series after linking suicides in the U.K. to Law's products.

By April 27, 2023, the ITO states, "in an effort to protect the public, Peel Regional Police and Canada Post acted exigently to track and intercept packages shipped" by Law. A Peel police detective obtained a shipping list linked to the suspect, outlining 1,209 packages sent to 41 countries.

According to the ITO, the shipping list contained information such as each receiver's name, phone number, address and tracking number.

Peel police then sought help from the RCMP and law enforcement agencies around the world to conduct "wellbeing checks" on each recipient. The results of the wellbeing checks are redacted in the publicly released ITO.

Interviews with families, statements from authorities and public records viewed by CBC have previously linked Law's products to at least 131 deaths worldwide — from the U.S. to Switzerland and New Zealand.

A trained engineer, the ITO lists Law's job at the time of his arrest as a line cook at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel in downtown Toronto. 

Toxic salt packets seized

The affidavit goes on to outline other investigative techniques employed in the case, including:

• Suspicious transaction reports provided by Canada's financial intelligence unit, FINTRAC.

• Analysis of postmortem examinations and toxicology reports.

• Search warrants carried out at Law's Mississauga, Ont., home and other redacted addresses.

According to the ITO, investigators seized an unspecified number of 50-gram packets of sodium nitrite, listed on the packaging as "99.999% pure." The package advises to keep its contents out of reach of children and "use in accordance with charcuterie recipe to cure meats."

WATCH | Accused poison seller Kenneth Law sued by Ontario teen's parents: 

Accused poison seller Kenneth Law sued by Ontario teen’s parents

2 months ago

Duration 2:47

Alleged poison seller Kenneth Law, linked to 131 deaths around the world, is being sued by the parents of an Ontario teen who died in 2022. In a $2-million civil case, Jeshennia Bedoya Lopez’s parents allege Law sold her a ‘suicide kit’ online that she later used during a mental health crisis.

Sodium nitrite is a chemical compound used in low concentrations as a meat preservative. It can be purchased legally in Canada. When ingested in pure form, the substance can be deadly. 

Gourlay and Law's other lawyers said in a court filing that among his 14 alleged victims in Ontario, 13 purportedly died after ingesting sodium nitrite, while one used "a mask and regulator" sold by Law.

"The Crown alleges that he sold otherwise legal products, which each of the deceased persons purchased and used to end their own lives," Law's legal team wrote.

None of the allegations have been proven in court. Law's case is scheduled to return to Ontario Superior Court in Newmarket on Dec. 6.

If you or someone you know is struggling, here's where to get help:

• Canada's Suicide Crisis Helpline: Call or text 988.

• Kids Help Phone: 1-800-668-6868. Text 686868. Live chat counselling on the website.

• Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention: Find a 24-hour crisis centre.

• This guide from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health outlines how to talk about suicide with someone you're worried about.