15/08/2024
BREAKING NEWS: Five people arrested in connection with Matthew Perry’s death.
BREAKING NEWS: Five people, including two California doctors, a reputed drug dealer, and Matthew Perry’s live-in personal assistant, have been charged in connection with the actor’s accidental overdose death, according to federal prosecutors. Perry, 54, was found face down in the heated end of a pool at his Pacific Palisades home on October 28, 2023. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office determined his death was due to the acute effects of ketamine, an anesthetic with psychedelic properties.
An 18-count superseding indictment revealed that Jasveen Sangha, known as the “ketamine queen,” provided Perry’s assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, with the ketamine that led to Perry’s death. Iwamasa, who injected Perry with the drug on the day of his death, had received the syringe from Dr. Salvador Plasencia, who had also supplied ketamine to both Perry and Iwamasa in the past. Sangha and Plasencia were arrested in Southern California and charged with conspiracy to distribute ketamine.
Iwamasa, 59, pleaded guilty on August 7 to conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing a death, admitting to repeatedly injecting Perry with the drug despite having no medical training. Dr. Mark Chavez, a San Diego physician, also agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to distribute ketamine, acknowledging that he had sold ketamine to Plasencia. Erik Fleming, a 54-year-old acquaintance of Perry’s, admitted to distributing the ketamine that ultimately killed the actor.
The family of “Dateline” correspondent Keith Morrison, Perry’s stepfather, expressed their support for the charges, stating that while they remain heartbroken by Perry’s death, they are grateful law enforcement has taken the case seriously.
Perry had been undergoing ketamine infusion therapy to treat depression and anxiety, but his last session was more than a week before his death.
The medical examiner ruled Perry’s death an accident, citing contributing factors such as drowning, coronary artery disease, and the presence of buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid addiction.