U.S. Citizen Sidney Kilmartin Sends British Man Cyanide To Help Commit Suicide, Gets Arrested

In what has to be a rather unusual case of assisted suicide, 52-year-old Sidney P. Kilmartin from South Windham, Maine has been arrested on federal charges after he was accused of killing a man in England. According to the Central Maine, Sidney has been accused of mailing the dangerous and extremely toxic chemical potassium cyanide to an individual identified as Andrew Denton of Hull, England, who later allegedly committed suicide using the poison sent by Sidney.

The incident dates back to 2012 — after the body of Denton was found in his home by authorities in England, reports the Seattle Pi. Following an investigation, they learned that Denton had died of cyanide poisoning. Traces of cyanide was also found near the place where his body was found. An autopsy revealed that the death of the man was due to cyanide poisoning. Upon further investigations, it became clear that he had acquired the dreaded chemical from the Internet. After working in conjunction with U.S. federal agents, it was deduced that the potassium cyanide was sourced from an individual in the United States who had mailed it to Denton.

According to British authorities, Andrew Denton was suffering from depression in the last few years of his life and was on the lookout for an easy way out of his misery. Denton’s body was found inside his home in December 2012. Sidney Kilmartin is accused of sending the poison by mail from Maine on November 16, 2012. It is thought that this action resulted in Denton’s death on December 11, 2012.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Attorney’s office has confirmed that it is not seeking the death penalty for Sidney in this case. The maximum penalty that Sidney faces, if convicted, would be life imprisonment.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Donald Clark clarified the situation.

“In all death eligible cases, the attorney general has to file a notice of intent. The attorney general makes the final decision on all death eligible cases. This defendant does not face the death penalty and would not face the death penalty.”

Meanwhile, Sidney Kilmartin has pleaded not guilty in U.S. District Court in Bangor to charges of mailing injurious articles and mailing injurious articles resulting in death. A court appointed attorney for Sidney reserved the right to amend his plea to not guilty by reason of insanity. Kilmartin is being held in custody until a detention hearing, scheduled for November 14.

Authorities are still in the dark as to how Sidney was able to source the extremely deadly potassium cyanide. The chemical, which looks like sugar, finds use in several industrial applications. If ingested by humans, the chemical reacts to release the extremely toxic hydrogen cyanide gas, which interferes with the body’s ability to use oxygen.

[Image via Wikimedia Commons]