A coroner has written to the government to urge them to take action to prevent further deaths after an American law professor died after buying sedatives online without a prescription.
Kimberly Liu, 40, was found by at her home in London on Feb. 7, 2023 by her husband who called an ambulance but paramedics confirmed she was already dead.
An inquest last year concluded her death was caused by “mixed drug toxicity.”
The assistant coroner for north London, Ian Potter, said: “Post-mortem toxicological analysis revealed numerous prescription-only medications in Dr. Liu’s blood at the time of her death. Some of these medications had been prescribed by Dr. Liu’s general practitioner and were at or about therapeutic levels, whereas other medications, which had not been prescribed by her GP, were found at levels suggestive of excessive use.”
Repeat Orders Available Online Without Prescription
The inquest heard Ms. Liu had been buying prescription-only sedatives from websites which allowed customers to buy such drugs without prescriptions and even make repeat orders on the same day.He said on one occasion in 2021 Ms. Liu was able to make several identical orders of tablets within nine minutes of each other “without question or checks.”
Mr. Potter said the websites had different URLs but appeared to be operated by the same company because an identical WhatsApp number was given, allowing people to make orders by smartphone.
He called on the government to consider, “the impact that the availability of such websites has on the population at large, together with the significantly increased risks to those who have developed an addiction to such medications or may even be contemplating acts of self-harm.”
Websites Told Customers to Disguise Payments
He said those operating the websites were clearly aware their trade was likely to attract the attention of the authorities.One website sent a message saying: “This is to inform you that usage of the name ‘Sleeping Tablets’ during the payment at the banks is prohibited. Kindly do not use the brand name as it can be harmful for us.”
It added, in capitals: “Do not mention the product or website when making payment.”
Mr. Potter told the minister, “I also believe that consideration ought to be given to whether and what action(s) could be taken to remove or limit access to or the availability of such websites.”
It is understood she had an identical twin, Meredith, who also went to Harvard and later founded a non-profit called The Primary School.
Their father, Korbin Liu, was born in Fuzhou, China, and their grandfather was the naval attaché at the Chinese Embassy, prior to the communist takeover in 1949.
Ms. Frazer has been given until Feb. 15 to respond to Mr. Potter’s report.
Nitazenes are a group of synthetic opioids hundreds of times stronger than heroin, and ten times stronger than fentanyl, and have also been found in prescription drugs purchased online by the UK’s only national drugs-testing service.
Benzodiazepam is available on prescription for common conditions such as anxiety and sleeping problems, but some people bypass their GP and buy the medication online from what they believe are safe pharmacies. The medication is sometimes used recreationally and can be addictive.
