Matthew Perry was not murdered. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner ruled his October 28, 2023 death an accident caused by the acute effects of ketamine, with drowning, coronary artery disease, and buprenorphine listed as contributing factors.1County of Los Angeles Department of Medical Examiner. Cause and Manner of Death Determined for Matthew Langford Perry But federal prosecutors treated the death as a crime scene of a different kind: five people were charged with running the supply lines that fed the Friends star’s addiction, and all five have now pleaded guilty. The last of them was sentenced in May 2026.
What the Autopsy Found
Perry was found unresponsive in the hot tub at his Los Angeles home. His blood contained ketamine at concentrations equivalent to what would be used during general anesthesia. The medical examiner concluded the drug could not have come from his most recent legitimate infusion therapy session, which had taken place roughly a week and a half earlier.2The New York Times. Matthew Perry Cause of Death That single finding, that the ketamine in his system was not from his clinic, opened the criminal investigation.
Perry had been receiving ketamine infusion therapy in Los Angeles to treat depression and anxiety, a treatment he had first encountered at a Swiss rehabilitation facility. According to DEA Administrator Anne Milgram, he became addicted to intravenous ketamine and began seeking illicit sources after his clinic’s doctors refused to raise his dosage.3The New York Times. Matthew Perry Ketamine Treatment In the final month of his life, prosecutors said, Perry spent at least $55,000 on illicit ketamine.4NBC News. Depths of Matthew Perry’s Addiction
How the Drugs Reached Him
A joint investigation by the DEA, LAPD, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service traced two separate channels feeding Perry’s supply.5U.S. Department of Justice. Five Defendants Including Two Doctors Charged in Connection With Actor Matthew Perry’s Fatal Ketamine Overdose
The first ran through two physicians. Dr. Mark Chavez, a San Diego doctor who had previously run a ketamine clinic, obtained the drug by diverting it from that clinic and by submitting fraudulent prescriptions, including one written in a former patient’s name without her consent.6BBC. Matthew Perry Doctor Mark Chavez Sentencing Chavez sold it to Dr. Salvador Plasencia, a Santa Monica physician, who then sold it to Perry through his personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa. Plasencia also taught Iwamasa how to inject the drug and at times injected Perry himself. Between September 30 and October 12, 2023, Plasencia distributed 20 vials, tablets, and syringes, charging a total of $57,000 for a product that cost a physician about $12 to $15 per vial.7U.S. Department of Justice. Former Physician Sentenced to 2½ Years in Federal Prison In text messages with Chavez, Plasencia wrote of Perry: “I wonder how much this moron will pay” and “Lets find out.”8The New York Times. Matthew Perry Salvador Plasencia Sentencing
The second channel ran through the street. Erik Fleming, a licensed drug addiction counselor, connected Iwamasa to Jasveen Sangha, a North Hollywood dealer known as “the Ketamine Queen.” Prosecutors said Sangha had operated a high-volume drug trafficking business from her home since at least 2019, marketing herself as an exclusive supplier to Hollywood clients.9U.S. Department of Justice. North Hollywood Drug Dealer Sentenced to 15 Years Fleming bought her ketamine and resold it to Iwamasa, marking the price up from $160 to $220 per vial.10ABC News. Matthew Perry Ketamine Case Erik Fleming Over 11 days in October 2023, Iwamasa purchased 51 vials through Fleming. The last batch of Sangha’s ketamine changed hands on October 24, 2023, four days before Perry died.11DEA. Matthew Perry’s Former Live-in Personal Assistant Sentenced to Nearly 3½ Years
The Morning He Died
On the morning of October 28, 2023, Iwamasa injected Perry with two doses of ketamine. Perry then asked for a third, telling his assistant to “shoot me up with a big one.”12ABC News. Matthew Perry’s Assistant Set to Be Sentenced for Injecting Ketamine That Killed Him Iwamasa administered it and left the house. He returned to find Perry dead in the hot tub.
Iwamasa then cleaned up bottles and syringes and, when LAPD officers arrived, handed them a list of Perry’s medications with ketamine deliberately omitted.11DEA. Matthew Perry’s Former Live-in Personal Assistant Sentenced to Nearly 3½ Years The other end of the chain moved to destroy evidence too. Sangha texted Fleming: “Delete all our messages.”5U.S. Department of Justice. Five Defendants Including Two Doctors Charged in Connection With Actor Matthew Perry’s Fatal Ketamine Overdose Plasencia later provided investigators with altered medical records fabricating a treatment plan to make his sales look like legitimate care.
Why the Charges Weren’t Murder
Federal prosecutors did not charge anyone with murder. They charged the defendants under drug trafficking statutes, with Sangha’s most serious count being distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury. That framing reflects both the accident ruling and the theory of the case: no one intended to kill Perry, but several people knowingly sold him a controlled substance outside legitimate medical use, and one of them died as a result.
U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said the prosecution sent “a clear message that we will hold drug-dealers accountable for the deaths they cause.”5U.S. Department of Justice. Five Defendants Including Two Doctors Charged in Connection With Actor Matthew Perry’s Fatal Ketamine Overdose Milgram framed the doctors as “unscrupulous” figures “who abused their position of trust because they saw him as a payday.”
The Guilty Pleas
All five defendants pleaded guilty. Fleming and Iwamasa entered pleas in August 2024, shortly after charges were announced. Chavez followed in October 2024. Plasencia and Sangha initially pleaded not guilty and were charged in an 18-count superseding indictment; Plasencia changed his plea in July 2025, and Sangha changed hers in August 2025, weeks before her trial was scheduled to begin.13BBC. Ketamine Queen Sangha Sentenced
Who Got What at Sentencing
U.S. District Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett sentenced all five defendants in the Central District of California between December 2025 and May 2026.
- Jasveen Sangha received 15 years (180 months) in federal prison on April 8, 2026, after pleading guilty to five counts including distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury. Judge Garnett said Sangha “must answer for her crimes” and had “shown no remorse in the years since her arrest.” She had no prior criminal record.13BBC. Ketamine Queen Sangha Sentenced14Los Angeles Times. Ketamine Queen Sentenced for Drug Dealing That Killed Matthew Perry
- Kenneth Iwamasa, Perry’s live-in assistant, received 41 months in federal prison on May 27, 2026, along with two years of supervised release and a $10,000 fine. Prosecutors credited him as their “most important witness,” but when his attorney argued he was “unable to say no” to Perry, Judge Garnett responded: “Unwilling. Not unable.”15CNN. Matthew Perry Kenneth Iwamasa Sentencing
- Dr. Salvador Plasencia received 30 months in federal prison on December 3, 2025, plus two years of probation and a $5,600 fine, after pleading guilty to four counts of distribution of ketamine. He surrendered his California medical license in September 2025.16NBC News. Doctor Sentenced for Selling Matthew Perry Ketamine
- Erik Fleming received two years in federal prison and three years of probation on May 13, 2026. His attorney said Fleming had “handed over the Ketamine Queen on a silver platter,” and prosecutors acknowledged his early cooperation sped the investigation.17CNN. Matthew Perry Erik Fleming Sentencing
- Dr. Mark Chavez received eight months of home detention, three years of supervised release, and 300 hours of community service on December 16, 2025. He had faced up to 10 years but cooperated early and surrendered his medical license in November 2024.18The Guardian. Matthew Perry Death Doctor Home Confinement
At Sangha’s sentencing, Perry’s stepmother Debbie Perry told the court: “The pain you’ve caused to hundreds maybe thousands is irreversible,” and asked the judge to impose the maximum sentence “so she won’t be able to hurt other families like ours.”19BBC. Debbie Perry Victim Impact Statement at Sangha Sentencing Perry’s mother, Suzanne Morrison, wrote before Iwamasa’s hearing that the family had trusted “a man without a conscience” and that “my son paid the price.”20NBC News. Matthew Perry’s Mother Condemns Assistant Who Enabled Addiction
Sangha’s docket was marked terminated on April 9, 2026, and no appeal has been filed.21CourtListener. United States v. Sangha Docket With Iwamasa’s sentencing in May 2026, the prosecution ended.