Five Defendants Charged in Connection to ‘Friends’ Star Matthew Perry’s Death

By LILY TINOCO | Assistant Editor

A total of five defendants, including two doctors, have been charged in connection with actor Matthew Perry’s fatal ketamine overdose in October 2023 in his Pacific Palisades home, according to a statement from the United States Department of Justice on Thursday, August 15.

The individuals are charged with distributing ketamine to Perry leading up to his death.

Perry died on Saturday, October 28, 2023. He was found in the hot tub at his home on Blue Sail Drive in Castellammare. Los Angeles Police Department continued its investigation into the circumstances of Perry’s death, based on the Medical Examiner’s findings.

Perry died from “acute effects of ketamine,” the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office reported in December 2023. The autopsy report also cited drowning, coronary artery disease and the effects of buprenorphine as contributing factors in his death.

Two defendants were arrested Thursday, August 15: Jasveen Sangha, also known as “The Ketamine Queen” of North Hollywood, and Dr. Salvador Plasencia, also known as “Dr. P” of Santa Monica, according to the U.S. DOJ.

Sangha and Plasencia were charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine. Sangha was also charged with one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute ketamine and five counts of distribution of ketamine.

Plasencia was charged with seven counts of distribution of ketamine, and two counts of altering and falsifying documents or records related to the federal investigation.

A superseding indictment alleged that Sangha’s distribution of ketamine on October 24, 2023, caused Perry’s death.

Three other defendants—charged separately—are Eric Fleming, who admitted in court documents that he distributed the ketamine that killed Perry, after obtaining it from Sangha and distributing it to Perry’s live-in personal assistant Kenneth Iwamasa; Iwamasa, who admitted to repeatedly injecting Perry with ketamine without medical training, including multiple injections on the day Perry died; and Dr. Mark Chavez, who agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine.

“We allege each of the defendants played a key role in [Perry’s] death by falsely prescribing, selling or injecting the ketamine that caused [his] tragic death,” Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Anne Milgram said in a statement. “Matthew Perry’s journey began with unscrupulous doctors who abused their position of trust because they saw him as a payday, to street dealers who gave him ketamine in unmarked vials.”

If convicted of all charges, Sangha would face a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a statutory maximum sentence of life imprisonment. Plasencia would face up to 10 years in federal prison for each ketamine-related count and up to 20 years in federal prison for each records-falsification count.

When sentenced in their federal cases, Iwamasa and Fleming would face up to 15 years and 25 years, respectively.

Chavez has been charged in an information pursuant to a plea agreement and will be arraigned on Friday, August 30. At sentencing, Chavez will face up to 10 years in federal prison.

Sangha and Plasencia made their initial appearances on Thursday, August 15, in U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles. Both defendants were arraigned and pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges against them.

Plasencia’s trial date is set for October 8, and Sangha’s trial date is October 15.