Mississauga man charged after Cambridge man dies during private ibogaine ceremony

A Mississauga man has been charged with criminal negligence causing death and selling a prescription drug recklessly after a Cambridge man died during what police describe as a "private ibogaine healing experience" on July 4.

Waterloo Regional Police officers responded to a sudden death call and determined the Cambridge man had consumed ibogaine, a psychoactive alkaloid extract from the root bark of a Central West African rainforest shrub. On July 30, police searched a home in Mississauga and seized suspected ibogaine along with several other powders, liquids, and capsules. Those items have been submitted to Health Canada for analysis.

Ibogaine is not authorized for use in Canada in either human or veterinary applications. Health Canada issued a risk communication in June 2015 advising the public not to use it, citing serious and fatal adverse reaction reports. The UC Berkeley Centre for the Science of Psychedelics notes that while ibogaine has been studied for potential treatment of addiction and mental health conditions, it can be dangerous — scientific literature documents numerous reports of fatal cardiac events following ibogaine use.

Waterloo Regional Police said investigators believe there may be additional victims and are asking anyone with information to contact police or Crime Stoppers. A 2024 Stanford University study did find military veterans treated with ibogaine at a clinic in Mexico showed improvement for depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, but such treatment remains outside Canada's medical framework.