Matthew Perry’s live-in assistant injected him with the ketamine which killed him, federal prosectors alleged Thursday.
The revelation came as prosecutors revealed five people have been arrested over his death, including a woman nicknamed the “ketamine queen of Los Angeles”, and a doctor, all of them accused of feeding off the Friends star’s addiction to make themselves rich.
Perry, 54, was found by the same assistant who injected him. He was face-down in a hot tub at his Pacific Palisades home last October.
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After an autopsy revealed that the actor died from the acute effects of ketamine, an extensive investigation was launched to uncover the source of the drug.
Martín Estrada, the United States attorney for the Central District of California, announced during the conference Thursday that federal criminal charges have been filed against five defendants in connection with Perry’s death. This comes after news broke Thursday that arrests had been made in the investigation. Estrada said Perry’s death investigation “revealed a broad, underground criminal network responsible for distributing large quantities of ketamine to Mr. Perry and others.”
That network, Estrada said, included Perry’s “live-in assistant,” Kenneth Iwamasa. Iwamasa’s LinkedIn page describes his role as “executive assistant to personal manager responsibilities for 25 years for client Matthew Perry.”
Five people in total have been charged: Iwamassa, Dr. Salvador Plasencia, Jasveen Sangha (who authorities said is known as “the ketamine queen”), another doctor by the name of Mark Chavez, and an acquaintance of Perry’s named Erik Fleming. Plasencia and Sangha are the primary defendants out of the five, authorities shared.
Estrada said that Plasencia, an urgent care physician, “worked with Mr. Perry’s live-in assistant, defendant Kenneth Iwamasa, to distribute ketamine to Mr. Perry.” Over two months from September to October 2023, Estrada also said, “they distributed approximately 20 vials of ketamine to Mr. Perry, in exchange for $55,000 in cash,” and that “Plasencia saw this as an opportunity to profit off of Mr. Perry.” Sharing text messages allegedly sent by Plasencia, Estrada read aloud, “I wonder how much this moron will pay.”
Iwamasa would inject Perry with the ketamine, even though he had no medical training, authorities uncovered. Sangha “worked with a broker, defendant Fleming, and also the live-in assistant, defendant Iwamassa, to distribute this ketamine.” A search of Sangha’s home uncovered “what amounted to a drug-selling emporium,” Estrada said, which included “80 vials of ketamine, thousands of pills containing methamphetamine, cocaine, bottles of Xanax and other illegally obtained prescription drugs.”
The charges against the defendants include conspiracy to distribute ketamine, distribution of ketamine resulting in death, maintaining drug-involved premises, and falsifying records, among other counts.
Estrada concluded, “These defendants were more interested in profiting off Mr. Perry than caring for his well-being” and expressed his hope that the charges send a clear message: “If you are in the business of selling dangerous drugs, we will hold you accountable for the deaths that you cause.”
Later Thursday, the United States attorney for the Central District of California confirmed both Sangha and Plasencia made their initial appearances at the U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles. The pair were arraigned and pleaded not guilty.
Sangha was jailed without bond, while U.S. Magistrate Judge Alka Sagar set Plasencia’s bond at $100,000.
Plasencia’s trial date is Oct. 8, while Sangha’s is a week later, on Oct. 15, though prosecutors said they expect the dates to be “consolidated at some point in the near future.”
