Police now reportedly believe the GTA man accused of selling poison to people who went on to take their own lives had planned at least one of their deaths in advance.
At least one of the more than a dozen second-degree murder charges against Kenneth Law have been upgraded to first-degree murder, according to multiple reports.
The 58-year-old former chef from Mississauga was arrested in May and accused of running several websites that were used to sell sodium nitrite, and other items that can be used for self-harm, shipping them to people in more than 40 countries.
Sodium nitrite is a substance used in meat-processing and can be deadly if consumed in large doses.
Investigators believe more than 1,200 packages were sent out globally, with about 160 sent to people in Canada.
The reports of upgraded charges would suggest significant new evidence has been uncovered in the case against Law. In December, police announced 14 new charges of second-degree murder, in addition to his previous 14 charges of counselling and aiding suicide.
Police have said the charges involve victims from across Ontario who ranged in age from 16 to 36.
The charges were filed in a York Region court and the defence lawyer for Law said at the time his client would be pleading not guilty to the murder charges. The accused has maintained the products he sold were legal and he is not responsible for what people do with them.
There are 11 Ontario police agencies investigating Law, along with several agencies in other countries.
Peel Regional Police are leading the multi-jurisdictional investigation and say they cannot comment on the reported first-degree murder charges. CityNews has reach out to the Minister of the Attorney General for comment.
With files from The Canadian Press
