BANGOR, Maine — A new indictment handed up Wednesday by a federal grand jury accused a South Windham man of sending cyanide to an Englishman knowing he would use it to commit suicide not out of empathy but in order to prevent him from speaking with American authorities.
Sidney P. Kilmartin, 53, allegedly sold Epsom salts that he advertised as cyanide to individuals he met on wantdeath.blogspot.uk.com, a website devoted to people who want to end their lives. Kilmartin is alleged to have sent Epsom salts to Andrew Denton of Hull, England, before sending cyanide to Denton so he could kill himself.
Denton, who had a history of suicide attempts, took his own life December 2012. His death was ruled a suicide, according to court documents. His body was found on Dec. 31, 2012, at his home by a relative.
In connection with Denton’s death, Kilmartin was indicted Wednesday on one count each of mailing injurious articles resulting in death, witness tampering and witness retaliation. The indictment alleges that Kilmartin, who previously had sent Epsom salts to Denton, sent him cyanide in order to prevent him from talking to U.S. law enforcement officers about Kilmartin’s scheme to sell Epsom salts as cyanide.
In addition to the charges, the new indictment accuses Kilmartin of swindling Denton and four others by selling them Epsom salts he advertised online as cyanide between April 2012 and May 2013. The indictment does not include information about the fate of those individuals, or if they complained that the product Kilmartin allegedly sold them was ineffective as Denton reportedly did.
Because of the alleged activity, the grand jury charged Kilmartin with seven counts of wire fraud and five counts of mail fraud. Kilmartin received nearly $1,050 for the fake cyanide, the indictment alleges.
In addition to Denton, Kilmartin is accused of selling Epson salts purported to be cyanide to another resident of Hull, England, as well as Americans in California, Colorado and Georgia. Kilmartin allegedly advertised the drug online as “a painless and quick way to commit suicide” and offered to sell “industrial grade” potassium cyanide for $250 per gram, according to court documents.
Kilmartin was living with his wife but legally was in the custody of the Maine Department of Health and Human Services when he allegedly mailed cyanide to Benton, according to court documents. He was found not criminally responsible in 2009 for crimes he was accused of committing two years earlier, including an aggravated assault on an elderly man.
In October, U.S. District Judge John Woodcock found him competent to stand trial.
He is scheduled to be arraigned on Dec. 18 at the federal courthouse in Bangor.
Kilmartin has been held without bail since his arrest on Nov. 5, 2014, when he pleaded not guilty to the earlier charges.
If convicted, he faces life in prison on the counts related to Denton’s death. Although the statute allows federal prosecutors to seek the death penalty, they are not, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.
On the other counts, Kilmartin faces up to 20 years in prison.