Relatives of those who died by suicide discovered their loved ones had been active in online forums for those looking for ways to end their lives. They were directed to a retailer selling fatal quantities of sodium nitrite to people in crisis in more than 40 countries. Police and journalists hunted down Kenneth Law, who admitted to selling to hundreds of people worldwide. But authorities wanted to know whether Law was just providing a lethal product — or whether he was actively pushing people in crisis to take it.

The CBC podcast “Hunting the Suicide Salesman” recounts the effort to stop Law and shutdown the business of selling sodium nitrite. Host Daemon Fairless goes beyond the criminal investigation and takes an unusually frank and intimate examination of the issue of suicide — including causes, prevention efforts, and the hidden online world for those considering ending their lives.  

OUR SPOILER-FREE REVIEWS OF "HUNTING THE SUICIDE SALESMAN" BEGIN IN THE FINAL 11 MINUTES OF THE EPISODE.

For exclusive podcasts and more, sign up at Patreon.

Sign up for our newsletter at crimewriterson.com.

This show was recorded in The Caitlin Rogers Project Studio. Click to find out more.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.