Two California doctors, a reputed drug dealer known as the "ketamine queen," an alleged narcotics distributor, and Matthew Perry's live-in personal assistant have been charged in connection with the accidental overdose death of the actor last year, federal prosecutors announced Thursday.
On October 28, 2023, Perry, 54, was found face down in the heated end of his pool at his Pacific Palisades house. His death was ascribed by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office to the acute effects of ketamine, a hallucinogenic anesthetic.
Perry's assistant received the ketamine that finally caused the actor to pass away from Jasveen Sangha, a North Hollywood resident who dealt in ketamine and other drugs, according to an 18-count superseding indictment. On the day of Perry's death, Kenneth Iwamasa, the assistant, is said to have given him the narcotic injection. According to the accusation, Salvador Plasencia, a physician, provided the syringe. Plasencia had previously given ketamine to Perry and his assistant.
Sangha and Plasencia were arrested on Thursday in southern California. A lawyer for Sangha did not immediately respond to a request for comment. She had previously been arrested in March in connection with a separate federal drug case but was released after posting a $100,000 bond, according to court records.
Court records do not list an attorney for Plasencia.
The family of "Dateline" correspondent Keith Morrison, Perry’s stepfather, released a statement expressing their relief at the law enforcement action. "We were and still are heartbroken by Matthew’s death, but it has helped to know law enforcement has taken his case very seriously," the family said. "We look forward to justice taking its course."
In May, Los Angeles police confirmed they were collaborating with federal authorities to investigate the source of the ketamine Perry had consumed.
Although ketamine has long been a well-liked party drug, it has recently showed potential as a complementary therapy for depression. It is being injected or used as an infusion for a rising range of mental health conditions in clinics. Perry was receiving ketamine infusion therapy for anxiety and depression, however the last session was almost a week before Perry passed away. Because of its brief half-life, the medical examiner concluded that the ketamine discovered in Perry's system "could not be from that infusion therapy."
According to the medical examiner's findings, Perry had high body levels of ketamine, which are comparable to the dosage required for general anesthesia during surgery.
The coroner ultimately ruled his death an accident, with contributing factors including drowning, coronary artery disease, and the effects of buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid use disorder.
Perry, best known for his role as Chandler Bing on “Friends,” had been open about his lengthy struggles with opioid addiction and alcoholism, which he chronicled in his 2022 memoir, “Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing.” However, according to the medical examiner’s report, Perry had been clean for 19 months at the time of his death.
Law enforcement frequently looks into drug suppliers and, in certain situations, files charges against them after a high-profile death.
After Michael Jackson passed away in 2009, Dr. Conrad Murray, the singer's personal physician, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter for giving the singer a lethal dosage of potent medication. Actor Michael K. Williams died in 2021 from heroin laced with fentanyl, and federal prosecutors in New York have indicted four men in connection with this.
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