5 Charged In Death Of Matthew Perry: Doctors, Assistant, and ‘Ketamine Queen’ Drug Dealer!
LOS ANGELES, CA – Five people have been arrested and face federal charges in connection with the death of actor Matthew Perry, who died of a ketamine overdose in October 2023, including two doctors, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California announced Thursday.
Dr. Salvador Plasencia, 42, and 41-year-old Jasveen Sangha, also known as “The Ketamine Queen” according to prosecutors, are each charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine. Plasencia is also charged with seven counts of distribution of ketamine and two counts of altering and falsifying documents or records related to the federal investigation.
Sangha is also charged with one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute ketamine, and five counts of distribution of ketamine.
Both were arrested Thursday and were expected to be arraigned later the same day.
Three others have been charged separately and entered pleas. Eric Fleming, 54, pleaded guilty on August 8 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death. Fleming admitted delivering 50 vials of ketamine from Sangha to Perry’s live-in personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa. Half of the vials were delivered four days before Perry’s death.
Iwamasa, 59, pleaded guilty on August 7 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death. He admitted to injecting Perry with ketamine without medical training, including multiple injections on the day Perry died.
Dr. Mark Chavez, 54, has agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine. Chavez admitted selling ketamine to Plasencia. Some of the ketamine was diverted from his former ketamine clinic, and he obtained additional ketamine by making false representations to a wholesale distributor and by submitting a fraudulent prescription in the name of a former patient without that patient’s knowledge or consent.
“Today we announce charges brought against the five individuals who, together, are responsible for the death of Matthew Perry,” DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said in a statement. “We allege each of the defendants played a key role in his death by falsely prescribing, selling, or injecting the ketamine that caused Matthew Perry’s tragic death. Matthew Perry’s journey began with unscrupulous doctors who abused their position of trust because they saw him as a payday, to street dealers who gave him ketamine in unmarked vials. Every day, the DEA works tirelessly with our federal, state, and local partners to protect the public and to hold accountable those that distribute deadly and dangerous drugs – whether they are local drug traffickers or doctors who violate their sworn oath to care for patients.”
According to the superseding indictment returned Wednesday, beginning in September 2023, Plasencia learned of Perry’s interest in ketamine, and contacted Chavez, who previously ran a ketamine clinic, in order to obtain ketamine to sell Perry. In text messages to Chavez, Plasencia allegedly wrote, “I wonder how much this moron will pay” and “Lets [sic] find out.”
Plasencia allegedly Iwamasa how to inject Perry with ketamine, despite knowing Iwamasa had never received medical training.
Beginning in mid-October 2023, Iwamasa also began obtaining ketamine for Perry from Fleming and Sangha. Fleming coordinated the drug sales with Sangha, delivering money from Iwamasa to Sangha’s stash house, then delivering the drugs to Iwamasa.
Prosecutors say Sangha, who had allegedly sold a variety of drugs from her stash house in North Hollywood since at least 2019, had long been aware of the dangers of ketamine. In August 2019, Sangha allegedly sold ketamine to Cody McLaury in the hours before his overdose death. After McLaury’s family member sent Sangha a text message saying that her ketamine had killed him, Sangha searched “can ketamine be listed as a cause of death[?]” on Google.
A search warrant executed at Sangha’s residence after Perry’s death uncovered approximately 79 vials of ketamine, approximately 1.4 kilograms (3.1 pounds) of orange pills containing methamphetamine, psilocybin mushrooms, cocaine, and prescription drugs.
During the course of the investigation, in response to a legal request for documents, Plasencia allegedly provided falsified medical records indicating he had a legitimate “treatment plan” in place for Perry.
“These defendants cared more about profiting off of Mr. Perry than caring for his well-being,” U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in a statement. “Drug dealers selling dangerous substances are gambling with other people’s lives over greed. This case, along with our many other prosecutions of drug-dealers who cause death, send a clear message that we will hold drug-dealers accountable for the deaths they cause.”
Written by TMX staff, with additional reporting by Jack and Kitty Norton. Photo courtesy: Wikipedia Commons.
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