Matthew Perry’s mom slams his assistant over funeral behavior: ‘Trusted a man without a conscience’
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Actor Matthew Perry’s mother, Suzanne Perry, delivered an emotional victim impact statement during the sentencing proceedings against his longtime assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, on Wednesday, May 20.
Iwamasa has been accused of betraying the family’s trust and enabling Matthew’s addiction. The statement detailed Suzanne’s grief over her son’s death while also criticizing the assistant’s conduct during and after the funeral.
Suzanne Perry blames assistant in Matthew Perry death
Suzanne stated in her statement, “He had known Kenny, and so had we, for 25 years. Matthew trusted Kenny. We trusted Kenny. Kenny’s most important job, by far, was to be my son’s companion and guardian in his fight against addiction.”
She added, “We trusted a man without a conscience, and my son paid the price.” According to the statement, she said Iwamasa’s “number one responsibility” was to “ensure that Matthew remained what he wanted to be.”
Suzanne further stated, “Kenny knew, should he feel unduly pressured, that with one phone call to any number of the people in Matthew’s orbit, reinforcements would be on the way, and his job would be safe.”
However, she alleged that instead of protecting Matthew, Iwamasa “aided and abetted” his addiction. Suzanne claimed he “arranged for one source of supply, then another” and “shot the d*ugs into Matthew’s body, though he was not in the least qualified.”
She also criticized Iwamasa’s conduct after Matthew’s death. “He insisted on speaking at Matthew’s funeral, he clung to me and the family as if he was somehow the good guy who tried to save Matthew,” she wrote and further alleged, “When he had killed my son, he kept a sharp eye on me."
Suzanne continued, "He sent me songs, he drew a little map to help me find my way around the cemetery. If he saw a rainbow on, of Matthew’s favorite things, he would call me.”
Matthew Perry death case sparks emotional testimony
The grieving mother also recounted the night of Matthew’s death, writing, “He was, in spite of all we went through, my heart and soul. And then one night he was just a body, lying all but naked on the cold, damp grass of his backyard.”
She added, “Helicopters circled overhead, eager for a glimpse of my dead little boy, a picture they could show the whole world while I stood out on the street in the cold and begged for a blanket to cover him. Impossible, of course.”
Suzanne later visited him at the mortuary and recalled that he “looked almost beautiful and somehow relieved.” She concluded her statement by saying, “Nothing takes this pain away, nor will it, I am sure, for as long as I live.”
Matthew died on October 28, 2023, at the age of 54 after being found unresponsive in his jacuzzi. A coroner later determined that the actor died from the “acute effects of ketamine,” while drowning, coronary artery disease, and buprenorphine effects were also listed as contributing factors.
Federal prosecutors later charged five people in connection with Matthew’s death, including Iwamasa, counselor Erik Fleming, Dr Mark Chavez, Dr Salvador Plasencia, and Jasveen Sangha, who became publicly known as the “Ketamine Queen.”
