Pa. Mom Sues Amazon.com, UPenn Over Daughter's Suicide

The mother of a University of Pennsylvania student that killed herself with cyanide she bought off of Amazon is suing both the school and the retailer, according to multiple reports.

Arya Singh, who was 20 when she died in February of 2013, was treated “hostilely” by Penn, her mother Sujata said, according to NJ.com.

Amazon also should not have allowed the sale of cyanide capsules, the mother’s suit in Common Pleas Court alleges, according to Philly.com.

Singh was born in Allahabad, India and was a graduate of Allentown’s Parkland High School.

“Arya had an infectious smile and was a constant source of joy and laughter in the lives of her family and friends,” her obituary states. “She will make heaven a happier place.”

She was struggling with her classes in the School of Nursing, failing to show up for many of them, and she was also arrested and hospitalized for alcohol intoxication, the reports state.

Penn reportedly showed no mercy.

“Despite Arya’s problems, university employees’ conduct toward her was unsympathetic, hostile, and at times vindictive,” the suit states, according to reports.

Singh was set to have a hearing on an academic discipline matter on February 8, and she was not allowed to register for classes or live in the dorm until the issue was resolved, reports state. But the hearing was suddenly cancelled without her knowledge.

Officials then came to her dorm room at Rodin House and said she had to vacate the premises immediately, according to reports.

Singh’s roommate found her unresponsive that afternoon and she died soon thereafter.

As Singh’s life fell apart around her, one Penn official reportedly wrote in an email: “I have no sympathy for her [Arya Singh] - she deserves anything you dish out to her. Sorry not more sympathetic . . . needless to say I will not be serving as her adviser.”

Both Penn and Amazon said that they would not comment on pending litigation.

Photo of Arya Singh from obituary posted to Patch in 2013.