A book reportedly written by a Canadian serial killer has been removed from Amazon's website a day after being put on sale following protests by British Columbia authorities.
Outskirts Press, which published the book, issued a statement saying it had asked Amazon to remove the book from its website following public outrage and condemnation by British Columbia authorities.
"Outskirts Press apologises to the families of the victims for any additional heartache this may have caused," the statement read.
Amazon has removed a book from its website reportedly written by serial killer Robert Pickton
Robert Pickton was convicted in 2007 of six counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of sex workers, and was sentenced to life in prison. The 66-year-old slaughtered the women at his pig farm and fed some remains to his pigs.
By Monday afternoon, the 144-page memoir titled "Pickton: In His Own Words", was no longer available from the online retailer's Canadian website, the Associated Press reported. In the book, Pickton claimed he was innocent and was framed by the police.
More than 52,000 people signed a petition on the Change.org website urging Amazon to remove the book from its website to respect "the families who were affected by the horrible crimes of this predator ... and who are still going through their healing processes."
Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale told Parliament that the Correctional Service of Canada is investigating how the manuscript was smuggled out of the Kent Institution maximum security prison near Agassiz, British Columbia.
Authorities there promised to introduce a law to prevent offenders from profiting from their crimes.
A petition was started on Change.org asking Amazon to stop selling Pickton's book
British Columbia Premier Christy Clark said: "I am at a loss for words. To think about the pain that he's prepared to willingly cause all of the families of those people who he murdered.
"I have trouble understanding it and I think people will want to know that their government is doing everything it can to want to stop him from profiting from this at the very least."
British Columbia Solicitor General Mike Morris had asked Amazon to stop carrying the book, saying he considers it "despicable" that someone could profit from their crimes.
There is no confirmation that Pickton actually wrote the book, but a statement from Morris said the province is investigating every means possible to ensure that he will not profit from it in any way.
While Pickton was convicted of six counts of second-degree murder, 20 other charges of first-degree murder were stayed.
Pickton picked the women up from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, several square blocks of squalid hotels know to inhabit drug dealers and prostitutes. He lured them to his muddy, garbage-strewn farm with promises of money, alcohol and drugs.