Doctor pleads guilty - long prison term threatens
The death of Matthew Perry has caused worldwide shock. More details are now coming to light. It is alleged that the assistant of the "Friends" star administered more than 20 ketamine injections to his boss in his final days. Additionally, a doctor has pleaded guilty.
The sudden death of "Friends" star Matthew Perry last October caused shock and mourning in Hollywood and around the world. The police also quickly raised the question of how the actor obtained the anesthetic ketamine, which he had in unusually high amounts in his blood at the time of his death. After a "far-reaching criminal underground network" was uncovered, as California prosecutor Martin Estrada put it, and five people, including two doctors, a dealer, and the actor's assistant, were arrested last Thursday, more details are now coming to light.
According to US celebrity website "TMZ", citing court documents, Dr. Mark Chávez has already made a deal with the prosecution and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute ketamine. He faces up to ten years in prison. Chávez admitted to obtaining the medication by issuing fraudulent prescriptions and selling it to the also charged Dr. Salvador Plasencia. Plasencia, in turn, allegedly injected Perry with "large doses of ketamine" multiple times, including at the actor's home.
Plasencia was charged with conspiracy to distribute ketamine, distribution of ketamine resulting in death, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, and altering and falsifying records in connection with a federal investigation. Unlike his colleague, Plasencia maintains his innocence. The California Medical Board is also investigating the two doctors, but they have not yet lost their licenses, according to "TMZ".
Perry's assistant admits guilt
One of the doctors sold Perry around 25 bottles of ketamine for $55,000 in cash in September and October, prosecutor Martin Estrada said at a press conference Thursday. "I wonder how much this idiot will pay," the doctor wrote in a text message to an intermediary. The so-called "Ketamine Queen" drug supplier Jasveen Sangha sold Perry around 50 doses of ketamine in the weeks before his death. After Perry's death became known, the 41-year-old instructed her middlemen to delete all text messages about the deals. She is now also in custody and has pleaded not guilty.
Previously, Perry's personal assistant Kenneth Iwamasa and intermediary Erik Fleming had made deals with the prosecution. According to legal documents obtained by "TMZ", Iwamasa administered more than 20 ketamine injections to his boss in the last four days of his life, including on the day of his death, without any medical knowledge. He knew that Perry was "spiraling out of control". Iwamasa and Fleming face up to 15 and 25 years in prison, respectively, but prosecutors have agreed to reduce their sentences in exchange for their cooperation in the investigation.
Perry was found dead in his Los Angeles home last October with a large amount of the anesthetic ketamine in his body. The actor had previously spoken publicly about his struggle with addiction to alcohol and drugs, and also wrote about it in his memoir "Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing" published last year.
According to reports, Perry had undergone ketamine therapy for depression and anxiety. However, his last session was over a week and a half ago, so the ketamine found in his body at the time of death could not have come from this infusion therapy, according to the medical examiner's office.
Following Matthew Perry's tragic death, concerns about his drug use surfaced. It was reported that large amounts of ketamine were found in his system at the time of his passing.
Further investigations revealed that Perry's assistant administered over 20 ketamine injections to him in his final days, raising troubling questions about his care in his final moments.
