The actor’s assistant and doctors provided the actor with ketamine, resulting in a fatal overdose.
Friends star Matthew Perry died of “acute effects of ketamine” last year, according to the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner. As the one-year anniversary of the actor’s death approaches, there appears to be foul play involved.
Perry’s assistant worked with an acquaintance, the two doctors and a drug dealer to obtain ketamine for the actor — especially knowing his struggles with substance abuse and addiction. Perry himself noted that he spent up to half of his life in and out of treatment facilities.
An indictment filed in federal court on Wednesday detailed charges against Jasveen Sangha, dubbed “the Ketamine Queen,” and Dr. Salvador Plasencia. According to the indictment, Sangha had a “stash house” in North Hollywood and Dr. Plasencia was amongst a group who would get the ketamine to Perry, all while knowing about the actor’s history with substances and addiction.
According to the New York Times, court documents say Pe3rry’s assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, injected him with at least 27 shots of ketamine in the five days leading up to his death. The indictment also notes that defendants used coded language to discuss drug deals, referring to bottles of ketamine as “Dr Pepper,” “cans” and “bots.”
Three of the five people charged have already pleaded guilty, the New York Times reports — one being Iwamasa, who pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death.
Dr. Mark Chavez, the other doctor named in the indictment, admitted to selling ketamine to Dr. Plasencia — Chavez also pleaded guilty to one count conspiracy to distribute ketamine. Chavez made false representations to a wholesale ketamine distributor and submitted a fraudulent prescription using the name of a former patient, the New York Times reports.
Erik Fleming, Perry’s acquaintance, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and a count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death. Officials said he admitted to obtaining the drug from Sangha and distributing 50 vials to Iwamasa.
According to the New York Times, Sangha and Dr. Plasencia face several charges:
Conspiracy to distribute ketamine
Distribution of ketamine resulting in death
Possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine
Altering and falsifying records related to a federal investigation
If convicted, Sangha faces between 10 years and life in prison while Dr. Plasencia faces up to 10 years for each ketamine-related count and up to 20 years for each count of falsifying records.
Iwamasa faces up to 15 years in prison and Fleming faces up to 25 years. Dr. Chavez has been charged in an information pursuant to a plea agreement will be arraigned at the end of the month — he faces up to a decade in federal prison
At the press conference, head of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration Anne Milgram said Perry sought treatment for depression and anxiety. This led the actor to become addicted to intravenous ketamine.
“When clinic doctors refused to increase his dosage, he turned to unscrupulous doctors who saw Perry as a way to make quick money,” Milgram said about the actor. “Dr. Plasencia adn Dr. Chavez violated the oath they took to care for their patient.”
It’s unclear how Perry started his ketamine treatment nor is it clear how he began his relationship with Dr. Plasencia and Dr. Chavez began. According to the autopsy report, Perry’s ketamine infusion treatment involved a level of ketamine that would equate to the amount used in general anesthesia.
The New York Times highlights the financial aspect, noting that the doctors once charged Perry $2,000 for a vial of ketamine that cost only $12. Not only that, Sangha also sold about 50 vials of the drug to the actor for $11,000.
The drug dealer had been caught in a similar situation back in March when she was arrested on narcotics charges, and she later posted a $100,000 bond in another case.
During a March 19 raid on Sangha’s home, authorities found almost 2,000 grams of methamphetamine pills and 79 bottles of liquid ketamine as well as pills suspected to be Xanax and substances suspected to be cocaine and psilocybin mushrooms. Authorities found a journal that detailed her drug transactions, totaling up to thousands of dollars.
The LA Times notes that Perry isn’t the first to overdose on Sangha’s product. She sold ketamine to Cody McLaury hours before his death, resulting in his sister texting the drug dealer.
A 1997 jet ski accident helped set in motion Perry’s addiction to painkillers, and he would take 55 pills per day over a year later. His addiction led to what the New York Times described as a “medical odyssey,” which included an exploded colon, life support, two weeks in a coma, nine months with a colostomy bag and more than a dozen stomach injuries.
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