Doctor who supplied ketamine to Matthew Perry to plead guilty, could face up to 40 years in prison
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Matthew Perry's doctor Salvador Plasencia has agreed to plead guilty to four counts of supplying ketamine to the late actor, who died in October 2023 following an overdose, Variety reported.
Federal prosecutors confirmed in a statement that the plea carries a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison. They added that Plasencia should formally plead guilty in the coming weeks, according to NPR.
Matthew Perry's doctor Salvador Plasencia agrees to plead guilty
In exchange for Salvador Plasencia's plea, prosecutors have agreed to drop three additional counts of distribution of ketamine and two counts of falsifying records, per the outlet.
Plasencia and a woman named Jasveen Sangha, who had been accused of being a ketamine dealer, had been the primary targets of the prosecution, after three other defendants, including another doctor, agreed to plead guilty in exchange for their cooperation, according to The Guardian.
In the plea agreement, Plasencia has acknowledged that he repeatedly provided ketamine without a legitimate medical purpose in the weeks leading up to Perry's death.
Moreover, the doctor in a text message called the late actor a "moron" who could be exploited for money, according to a co-defendant.
Plasencia had been scheduled to start trial in August.
The 'Friends' actor was found dead in a hot tub at his Los Angeles home on October 28, 2023, by his assistant. The medical examiner ruled that ketamine was the primary cause of death.
Perry had been using the drug through his regular doctor in a legal but off-label treatment for depression that has become increasingly common, per the outlet.
The actor started seeking more ketamine than his doctor would prescribe. A month before his death, he came across Plasencia and the doctor allegedly asked the other doctor, Mark Chavez, to get the drug for him, as per the court filings in the Chavez case.
Salvador Plasencia reportedly wanted to become Matthew Perry's 'go-to'
Salvador Plasencia reportedly sold the drugs to Matthew Perry for $4,500, and allegedly asked Mark Chavez if he could keep supplying them so that they could become the actor's “go-to,” prosecutors revealed.
Though Plasencia is accused of supplying the bulk of Perry’s ketamine in his final weeks, Sangha is alleged to have provided the dose that killed him.
Sangha is also scheduled to go to trial in August. She has pleaded not guilty, making her the only one of five people charged in Perry’s death to not enter a plea agreement.
Authorities alleged that Plasencia tried to cover his tracks during the investigation by preparing a "treatment plan" for Perry to show the ketamine was legitimately prescribed, according to Variety.
Following Perry's death, the DEA and LAPD started an investigation into the drugs involved, which led to multiple arrests, including that of the actor's personal assistant, Kenny Iwamasa.
Perry's stepfather, Keith Morrison, revealed to People that the star's "dying wish" was that people remember him "for helping other people, more than his famousness for 'Friends'. That has now become our mission in life is to carry that wish on."
