Man Facing Sentence in Suicide Powder Case Takes His Own Life

A 77-year-old man from Castricum, accused of unlawfully assisting a person to commit suicide, took his own life several days before his sentencing, the prosecutor’s office said.

Prosecutors had sought a 2.5-year prison sentence for Tom de M., with six months suspended, for selling a chemical known as “Substance X” online.

The unnamed powder is used in the chemical industry. It was sold as a painless way to end one’s life, but experts say death after taking it can take up to 40 hours.

Selling the powder itself is not a crime, but under Dutch law it is illegal to help someone achieve euthanasia unless it is done by a doctor who meets the strict conditions set out in the Euthanasia Act.

The prosecutor said De M. supplied the powder to at least 223 people, six of whom died, including a 33-year-old man.

Money laundering

De M made around 75,000 euros selling the substance and was also charged with money laundering.

The prosecution said De M showed “very little responsibility for the lives of others,” but De M maintained that his actions were not motivated by greed but by a need to help others. The substance was placed in a safe with a code for 60 days so that those who ordered it would have time to change their minds.

M is the second person suspected of supplying substance X to die before being sentenced. Loek de Leeuw, 80, died in April “due to stress caused by the prolonged court hearing”, his daughter told the Volkskrant.

The verdict in the case of the remaining group of senior members and former members of the right-to-die group Coöperatie Laatste Wil (CLW), of which M. was a member, is due on Thursday.

They are accused of belonging to a criminal organization. Substance X was illegally distributed through an underground network linked to the organization, the prosecution alleges.

Anyone struggling with suicidal thoughts can talk to someone anonymously online at www.113.nl or call the free number 0800-0113.