Matthew Perry's assistant among 5 people, including 2 doctors, charged in 'Friends' star's death
The actor died from the acute effects of ketamine, according to his autopsy.
LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Five people have been charged in connection with Matthew Perry's death from a ketamine overdose last year, including the actor's assistant and two doctors, prosecutors said Thursday.
U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada announced the charges Thursday, saying the doctors supplied Perry with a large amount of ketamine and even wondered in a text message how much the former "Friends" star would be willing to pay.
The death of Matthew Perry: A timeline of how events unfolded
Perry died in October due to a ketamine overdose and received several injections on the day he died from his live-in personal assistant.
Three of the defendants, including a doctor, have already pleaded guilty to federal drug charges in connection with this death, while two others were arrested on Thursday, according to the Department of Justice.
These are the people arrested in Matthew Perry's death:
- Jasveen Sangha, 41, allegedly known as "The Ketamine Queen," is accused of selling Perry the batch of ketamine that killed him.
- Dr. Salvador Plasencia, 42, a licensed medical doctor known as "Dr. P," is accused of distributing approximately 20 vials of ketamine to Perry.
- Dr. Mark Chavez, a licensed medical doctor, who worked to obtain the ketamine.
- Eric Fleming, who admitted in court documents that he distributed the ketamine that killed Perry.
- Kenneth Iwamasa, Perry's live-in assistant, worked with Sangha and Chavez to get the ketamine to Perry.
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The investigation into Perry's death
U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said investigators conducted a wide-ranging investigation following Perry's death in October 2023 that "revealed a broad, underground criminal network responsible for distributing large quantities of ketamine to Mr. Perry and others."
The investigation has been ongoing since Perry's death and includes the Los Angeles Police Department, DEA, U.S. Postal Service and the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The lead defendants in the case are Sangha and Plasencia. The three others separately charged in the case include Iwamasa, Chavez and Fleming.
"These defendants took advantage of Mr. Perry's addiction issues to enrich themselves," Estrada said during a press briefing on Thursday. "They knew what they were doing was risking great danger to Mr. Perry, but they did it anyway."
Plasencia pleaded not guilty during his arraignment Thursday afternoon, appearing with shackled feet in a button-down shirt and slacks.
Judge Alka Sagar agreed to Plasencia's release on $100,000 bond and ordered him to relinquish his passport. The judge also mandated that a sign be posted in the clinic alerting all patients of the ongoing federal case, and that patients must sign a form each time consenting that they are aware. The next hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 8.
Plasencia's attorney, Stefan Sacks, admits the doctor did provide ketamine to Perry, but also says he followed best medical practices.
"If you look at the timeline and you look at the facts, Dr. P was not involved in the events leading up to Matthew Perry's tragic death," Sacks said.
Eyewitness News spoke with one of Plasencia's patients, who asked to remain anonymous. She said she noticed red flags, likely rarely seeing him in person and instead texting symptoms to him.
"He quickly got back to me and told me what painkillers and medications he was going to prescribe to me, with very, very few questions in between," the patient said.
Sangha also pleaded not guilty during her arraignment on Thursday, appearing in a green Nirvana sweatshirt with purple hair and shackles on her feet.
Her attorney sought to have her released on bond. But the judge expressed concerns about her behavior in recent years and especially following Perry's death and described her "unrelenting return to drug dealing" after "her involvement in 2 overdose deaths including Perry's and an individual in 2019 allegedly linked to her dealing.
Sagar revoked her bond on Thursday and remanded her to the custody of the U.S. Marshal. Her next hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 15.
Defendants accused of taking advantage of Perry's addiction
Estrada said that in the fall of 2023, Perry, who has struggled with addiction in the past, "fell back into addiction, and these defendants took advantage to profit for themselves."
Plasencia is accused of distributing approximately 20 vials of ketamine to Perry in exchange for $55,000 in cash, Estrada said. Plasencia allegedly worked with Chavez to obtain ketamine and with Iwamasa to distribute that ketamine to Perry.
"Plasencia saw this as an opportunity to profit off of Mr. Perry," Estrada said, noting that the doctor allegedly wrote in text messages, "I wonder how much this moron will pay," and that he wanted to be the actor's "go-to for drugs."
As a doctor, Plasencia "knew the danger of what he was doing" and allegedly told another patient that Perry was "spiraling out of control with his addiction," Estrada said.
"Nevertheless, he continued to offer ketamine to Mr. Perry," Estrada said.
The other lead defendant, Sangha, is accused of selling 50 vials of ketamine for approximately $11,000 in cash over two weeks to Perry, working with Fleming and Iwamasa to distribute the drugs to Perry, according to Estrada. She is accused of selling Perry the batch of ketamine that killed him.
How Matthew Perry died
The assistant found the 54-year-old Perry face down in his hot tub on Oct. 28, and paramedics who were called immediately declared him dead.
The autopsy listed drowning, coronary artery disease and buprenorphine effects as contributing factors not related to the immediate cause of death. The manner of death was ruled an accident.
Perry had high levels of ketamine in his blood, likely lapsed into unconsciousness and then went under water, according to the autopsy.
He was reported to have been receiving ketamine infusions for depression and anxiety, with the most recent therapy coming 1 1/2 weeks before his death, according to the autopsy report. However, the medical examiner wrote the ketamine in his system at death could not have been from that infusion therapy, as ketamine's half-life is three to four hours or less.
Perry had years of struggles with addiction dating back to his time on "Friends," when he became one of the biggest television stars of his generation as Chandler Bing alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer for 10 seasons from 1994 to 2004
The Associated Press and ABC News contributed to this report.
