'It has broken us as a family,' mother of poison seller victim tells hearing

The mother of a British victim of poison seller Kenneth Law has said his death and the way that he died had "destroyed" their family.

Tanya Whitaker broke down at the start of her video statement about the death of her son, Samuel, shown on the second day of a four-day sentencing hearing of Law in Ontario, saying: "He barely had a chance."

The University of Warwick student was found collapsed outside his halls after taking poison sold by Law, who has admitted 14 counts of aiding suicide in Canada but has also been linked to nearly 80 deaths in the UK.

Debbie Cornish echoed Whitaker's sentiments, telling the hearing that her family was "still fighting" to stay together years on from her daughter Danielle's death.

A plea deal with Canadian authorities means Law will not face charges in the UK or over any British deaths, but impact statements from their families are being read this week.

"The enormity of losing a child is catastrophic," Whitaker told a Canadian court on Thursday. "Samuel was just 19 when he was handed the tools that ended his precious life."

She continued: "It has broken me completely and utterly. It has broken us as a family and me as a mother.

"Our son died alone at university 100 miles away from his family. We will never be able to forgive ourselves for this happening."

Whitaker said Samuel had been the only biological son of her husband, Paul.

"He is a shell of himself today. Broken and devastated beyond repair," she added.

Cornish, the mother of British victim Danielle, spoke of her anguish in a written statement, in which she referred to Law only by the initials KL.

"Words on paper can't even begin to describe the painful loss of our amazing daughter," she said.

"Nothing will be the same ever again as we are part of a surreal nightmare.

"Nearly four years on, we are still fighting to keep our family together... not to mention the constant thoughts of how she may have died.

"KL has changed the life of many many families all across the world as well as ours. We are living a constant nightmare."

Authorities say Law, a former chef, sold about 1,200 packages of toxic substances to recipients from 40 different countries he met in online suicide forums. Roughly a quarter of the packages were sent to the UK.

He was arrested in May 2023, following a complex investigation by at least 11 law-enforcement agencies that involved investigators from around a dozen countries, including the UK, Italy and the US.

The court also heard a statement from Faith George, the mother of Faith Ike-Elechi, who referred to her daughter by the nickname Chimma.

She found her daughter helpless on the floor after she had taken the poison, and said her last works "echo in my mind every day".

She said if she were able to speak to her daughter again she would tell her she had never stopped being proud of her.

Maurice Dunham, father of British victim Michael Dunham, said the last time he saw his son alive was on a family holiday to Croatia that Michael had left early to return home.

"The last conversation I had with him was an argument," he said in a written statement.

Maurice returned home days later and discovered Michael was dead.

"The feeling I had was like an electric shock going through me," he wrote. "I blamed myself for not stopping Michael from leaving the hotel room.

"I planned to take my own life. I didn't care if I lived or died."

Later, the court heard the words of the mother of Yeanu Mistry, who said hearing he had died was "the news every parent fears".

And Maureen Cooper, the mother of poison victim Gary Cooper, called the pain of losing her son "unbearable".

"A death such as this is the thing of nightmares," her written statement said.

Aimee Louise Elif Walton, from Southampton, died in "the company of a stranger [she] met online", her sister told the court.

Adele Zeynep Walton said in a video played at the hearing that someone from a suicide forum hadflown from the US and stayed with her in a hotel room for the 11 days leading up to her death.

"She died in a strange place, in a strange city, in the company of a stranger," her sister said.

"You only need to listen to the recording of the emergency call to know how much she suffered during the last moments of her life."

On Wednesday, the court heard from a British survivor who was given an antidote that saved her after taking poison from Law.

Elisabeth Belien told the court: "I feel guilty for surviving. Although I survived, it has also impacted my loved ones. I feel like my vulnerability was exploited. I still feel a lot of shame about what happened."

The hearing continues.