KUALA LUMPUR – Police have charged five individuals, including two doctors and Matthew Perry’s personal assistant, in connection with his drug-related death last year.
Authorities revealed on Thursday that their investigation, which began in May, uncovered an extensive underground network of drug suppliers distributing significant amounts of ketamine, according to the BBC.
Perry, aged 54, died at his Los Angeles residence in October. A post-mortem report revealed a high concentration of ketamine in his system, concluding that the “acute effects” of the substance caused his death.
On Thursday, US Attorney Martin Estrada said: “These individuals exploited Perry’s struggle with addiction for their own gain.
“They were fully aware of the severe risks to Perry’s life but proceeded regardless.”
Three of the defendants – including Perry’s assistant – have already pleaded guilty to drug charges, while two others – a doctor and a woman known as “The Ketamine Queen” – were arrested on Thursday, according to the justice department.
Ketamine, a potent anaesthetic, is also employed as a treatment for depression, anxiety, and pain.
Those close to Perry, known for his role as a lead character on the NBC television show Friends, told a coroner’s inquiry following his death that he had been receiving ketamine infusion therapy.
But his last session had taken place more than a week before his death.
The medical examiner said the ketamine in Perry’s system could not have been from the infusion therapy because of the drug’s short half-life.
According to the medical examiner, the levels of ketamine in his system were comparable to those used during general anaesthesia.
An indictment filed in federal court detailed the elaborate drug purchasing scheme that prosecutors say ultimately led to Perry’s death.
Prosecutors said Perry’s assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, worked with two doctors to provide the actor with over US$50,000 of ketamine in the weeks before his death.
Officials argued those involved in the scheme tried to profit from Perry’s well-known substance abuse issues.
One of the doctors, Salvador Plasencia, is alleged to have written in a text message: “I wonder how much this moron will pay.”
Plasencia, 42, provided Perry ketamine “outside the usual course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose,” according to the indictment.
He allegedly also instructed Iwamasa on how to administer ketamine injections to Perry without following proper safety protocols and monitoring, according to the police report.
Prosecutors claim that Iwamasa administered at least 27 ketamine injections to Perry in the four days leading up to his death.
This occurred even after Perry experienced severe reactions to a large dose of ketamine earlier that month, which caused him to “freeze up”. Following that incident, Plasencia had advised against using a similar dosage in the future, according to prosecutors.
Despite this, the doctor reportedly left multiple vials of the drug with Perry and his assistant after the event, as stated in the indictment.
Others charged in the case include Jasveen Sangha, the so-called “Ketamine Queen”, who supplied the drug to Plasencia with the help of two other co-defendants, Erik Fleming and doctor Mark Chavez.
Prosecutors revealed that authorities discovered bags of drugs and drug paraphernalia at Sangha’s “stash house”.
Chavez, Fleming and Iwamasa have all entered guilty pleas.
Sangha and Plasencia are scheduled to appear in court in Los Angeles on Thursday afternoon for arraignment, according to the US Justice Department.
Prosecutors allege that the defendants tried to conceal their actions following Perry’s death.
Sangha allegedly instructed another suspect via text to “delete all our messages.”
Plasencia is also accused of falsifying medical records, per the indictment.
Perry’s death, which was ruled an accident, was also attributed to drowning, with contributing factors including coronary artery disease and the presence of buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid dependence.
At the peak of his career, Perry struggled with addiction to painkillers and alcohol, undergoing rehabilitation multiple times.
He openly discussed his battle with substance abuse in his memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing.
In a 2016 interview with BBC Radio 2, he revealed that he had no memory of three years of filming Friends due to his alcohol and drug use.
After attempts at treatment, he wrote in his memoir that he had been mostly sober since 2001 – “save for about 60 or 70 mishaps”. – August 16, 2024
