California authorities say Matthew Perry paid sky-high prices for ketamine that ultimately resulted in his fatal overdose in October.
Five people, including two doctors and the "Ketamine Queen of Los Angeles," have been arrested in connection to the Friends star's death, the US Attorney's Office for the Central District of California said in a press conference Thursday.
This includes Perry's live-in assistant Kenneth Iwamasa, as well as Dr. Mark Chavez and Dr. Salvador Plasencia.
Perry's friend Erik Fleming and Jasveen Sangha – an alleged drug dealer known as the "Ketamine Queen of Los Angeles" have also been arrested. Authorities claimed these five people all "falsely prescribed, sold or injected the ketamine that caused Matthew Perry's tragic death."
Perry was found unresponsive in a hot tub at his Los Angeles home on October 28. Early news reports said that he appeared to have drowned. In December, it was determined his death was caused by the acute effects of ketamine. No drugs were found at the scene of his death.
Officials said Thursday that Perry originally sought treatment for depression and anxiety and went to a local clinic where he became 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.
Placencia and Chavez allegedly charged Perry $2,000 for a vial of ketamine that would cost Chavez about $12. As his addiction grew, Perry went to the streets for his ketamine where he ultimately bought the drugs that resulted in his death.
From September to October 2023, officials say Perry paid the doctors $55,000 in cash in exchange for 20 vials of ketamine which Iwamasa would administer to the actor.
"Plasencia saw this as an opportunity to profit off of Mr. Perry. He wrote in a text message in September 2023, 'I wonder how much this moron will pay,'" officials reported.
Plasencia allegedly stated in texts that he wanted to be Perry's sole drug supplier even as authorities claimed "Placentia knew full well the danger of what he was doing."
"In fact, on one occasion, he injected Mr. Perry with ketamine, and he saw Mr. Perry freeze up and his blood pressure spiked. Despite that, he left additional vials of ketamine for defendant Iwamasa to administer to Mr. Perry," according to officials.
Sangha also allegedly sold the actor ketamine when she "knew it could be deadly." In August 2019, Sangha sold ketamine to victim Cody McLaury hours before his overdose death.
After a family member of McLaury's sent Sangha a text message saying that her ketamine had killed McLaury, Sangha conducted a Google search for "can ketamine be listed as a cause of death[?]"
After Perry's death, investigators executed search warrants at Sangha's home where they found "a drug-selling emporium." Officials found approximately 79 vials of ketamine, and about 3.1 pounds of orange pills containing methamphetamine, psilocybin mushrooms, cocaine, and prescription drugs that appeared to be fraudulently obtained.
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