Amazon Sued For Selling Cyanide to Suicide Victim

Amazon is being sued by the mother of Arya Singh, a 20-year-old college junior who killed herself in 2013 after purchasing cyanide crystals from the online retailer. The suit also names the University of Pennsylvania, where Singh was a student in the school of nursing.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports:

Singh’s life began to unravel after an alleged sexual assault in 2011 by a male student that she reported to authorities, the suit says. No charges were filed against the student, and he remained on campus.

Following the assault, Singh’s academic performance plummeted, she was cited for misconduct, and was later hospitalized for alcohol intoxication. The lawsuit alleges that the university did little to intervene, claiming that employees acted “hostile” and “vindictive.”

Singh purchased cyanide crystals from Amazon on December 3, 2012. According to the Inquirer:

The lawsuit alleges that cyanide products were sold through Amazon at least 51 times to customers in the United States before Singh’s purchase.

Of those 51 sales, at least 11 resulted in the death of the purchaser, according to the suit.

On Feb. 2, 2013, Amazon began blocking sales of cyanide products, the suit says.

Singh ingested the crystals on February 8th, following an academic misconduct investigation. She was pronounced dead later that evening.

In addition to Amazon and the University of Pennsylvania, the suit names the Thailand-based company who sold the cyanide as a defendant.