Listen to Story One of two California doctors who were among the five people charged in the overdose death of "Friends" star Matthew Perry pleaded guilty on Wednesday to a charge of illegally distributing the drug ketamine. Dr Mark Chavez entered the plea during an appearance in US District Court in Los Angeles. At sentencing, he could face up to 10 years in prison.
(Dr Mark Chavez entered the plea during an appearance in US District Court in Los Angeles. Picture: Reuters) Another physician charged in the case, Dr Salvador Plasencia, has pleaded not guilty, as has co-defendant Jasveen Sangha, who authorities said was an illicit supplier of the drug and was known as the "ketamine queen." The pair are scheduled to go on trial in March.
Perry's live-in personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, who admitted to injecting Perry, and the alleged middleman who said he obtained ketamine from Sangha, have already pleaded guilty to charges they faced. Authorities said Plasencia purchased ketamine from Chavez, and in text messages to Chavez discussing the amount to charge Perry for the drug wrote: "I wonder how much this moron will pay." Plasencia administered ketamine to Perry and supplied vials that were injected by the assistant, according to court documents.
Perry died at age 54 in October 2023 from "acute effects" of ketamine and other factors that caused him to lose consciousness and drown in his hot tub, according to a December 2023 autopsy report. The actor had publicly acknowledged d.