Canadian ‘suicide kit’ seller linked to six New Zealand deaths pleads guilty to assisting 14 suicides
Friday, 5 June 2026
The Canadian man whose online ‘suicide kits’ ended the life of a Hamilton woman - and are linked to five other New Zealand deaths - has pleaded guilty to assisting the suicide of 14 people in Canada.
Kenneth Law, 60, has entered guilty pleas in an Ontario court as part of a deal with prosecutors, who withdrew more serious murder charges.
As well as the New Zealand deaths, which date back to 2022 and 2023 and took place in Hamilton, Wellington, Auckland, Taihape and Dunedin, Law has been linked to 90 deaths in the United Kingdom.
A statement from Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service said Law sent 330 packages to the UK via Canada Post.
While details of the items involved cannot be reported due to legal suppressions, the Waikato Times can provide details of the New Zealand deaths linked to Law after obtaining Coronial reports into the six deaths.
Hamilton woman Liana Nicole Kirk died in Hamilton on November 30, 2022 after a history of mental health challenges and substance abuse.
According to the Coronial report, in September 2022 Kirk “ordered an item online from a business which New Zealand police have confirmed is connected with Kenneth Law”.
“Mr Law is a Canadian who is accused of assisting suicides by enabling the distribution and marketing of materials online, and hosting discussion forums for people considering suicide.”
“I am satisfied that Liana died by suicide,” Coroner Alexandra Cunninghame said.
“Her note to her family sets out her reasons for wanting to end her life … This suggests a degree of forward planning, even if there may have been a degree of impulsivity around the time that she chose to die”.
Liana’s father Dale Kirk told Three News he never thought there was enough evidence to convict Law of murder and he was satisfied with the outcome.
“I mean, if he’s sitting in a jail in Canada, I’m OK with that.
“Ultimately, nothing changes… (it) doesn't bring back the people that died as a result. But I hope that he gets a, you know, a suitable sentence.”
The other reports reveal a similar pattern of online ordering.
The Coroner’s report into the April 2022 death of Nicholas David Alexander Heyworth in Wellington also linked his death to Law.
“Nicholas ordered an item online,” said Coroner Cunninghame.
“This is an entity which New Zealand police have confirmed is connected with Kenneth Law, a Canadian who is accused of assisting suicides by enabling the distribution and marketing of materials online, and hosting discussion forums for people considering suicide.
“The purchase … suggests that Nicholas had carried out research which directed him to information and products promoted by Mr Law, and that he had put in place steps to effect his death by December 2021 at the latest.”
Coroner Cunninghame, who also oversaw the inquiry into the 2022 Wellington death of James Derek Cottrell Plunket, noted that “packets … with branding from the business associated with Mr Law were found in the hotel room”.
“I am satisfied that James died by suicide. He had become aware of Mr Law and the resources he offered online,” she said.
She also undertook the investigation into Sayaka Josephine Steed’s death in Auckland in 2022, again noting she ordered items from Law’s website.
In that report she also noted “There have been other New Zealanders who have died as a result of using substances sold by Mr Law and entities associated with him”.
The report into the 2022 Taihape death of Savannah Auric also noted in 2023 Te Mana Whakaatu - Classification Office classified eight discussion threads from forums associated with Law as objectionable under the Films, Videos, and Publications Classification Act.
As well as placing an online order, Auric “visited a website which is described by police as a “chat-based forum where users can post about suicidal thoughts”.
“This website has been associated with Kenneth Law.”
The 2023 Dunedin death of Sylvia Madeleine Grant, who used the preferred name Crow, noted she also engaged online with websites related to Law.
“Police analysis of Crow’s mobile phone confirms that by February 2023 Crow was visiting websites and discussion forums associated with Kenneth Law,” Coroner Cunninghame said.
“On March 12, 2023 Crow ordered an item online from a business which New Zealand police have confirmed is connected with Mr Law.”
Britain’s Crown Prosecutor also said arrangements had been made with bereaved families in England and Wales “to submit victim impact statements to be heard in court at sentencing, and to attend the hearing remotely”.
Asked whether any such arrangements have been made for New Zealand victims, police told the Waikato Times “New Zealand Police has not received any requests for assistance in relation to this matter from Canadian authorities”.