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Five people, including two doctors, a well-known drug dealer, and the actor’s assistant, have been charged in relation to Matthew Perry’s unexpected overdose.
Back in October 2023, Matthey Perry was found unconscious in his hot tub at his Pacific Palisades home. The LA County Medical Examiner concluded that Perry’s death was due to ketamine overdose, a powerful anesthetic with hallucinogenic effects.
According to an eighteen-count indictment, Kenneth Iwamasa, Perry's aide, received ketamine from Jasveen Sangha, a North Hollywood drug dealer. Iwamasa gave Perry an injection on the day of his death, with a syringe that Dr. Salvador Plasencia had given him. Following their recent arrests, Sangha and Plasencia have been charged with plotting to distribute ketamine. Sangha has also been charged with other drug-related offenses.
Iwamasa admitted to injecting Perry without medical expertise and entered a guilty plea to conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing Perry's death. Another doctor in the case, Dr. Mark Chavez, agreed to enter a guilty plea for selling Plasencia ketamine, including medications that were taken from his clinic. Sangha claims that Erik Fleming, an assistant of Perry's, is suspected of dispersing the lethal ketamine.
Perry’s family has expressed a somber sense of relief, stating they are heartened by the seriousness of the investigation.
The investigation revealed that the ketamine levels in Perry’s system were dangerously high, far exceeding those typical of his prescribed therapy. Despite his struggles with addiction, Perry had been clean for 19 months prior to his death.
This case follows similar high-profile drug-related investigations, such as those following Michael Jackson’s and Michael K. Williams’ deaths.