The unraveling of Hollywood’s dark underbelly continues as a doctor agreed to plead guilty to distributing ketamine to a famous TV star.
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Dr. Salvador Plasencia faces up to 40 years in prison for illegally supplying ‘Friends’ star Matthew Perry with the powerful drug that ultimately led to his death.
Dr. Plasencia’s guilty plea comes after a DOJ investigation into the October 28, 2023, death of Perry, whose body was found with ketamine as the primary cause of death.
The disgraced doctor not only supplied Perry with the drug but also allegedly referred to the actor as a “moron” in text messages, showing a callous disregard for his patient’s wellbeing while exploiting him for financial gain.
While Perry had been using ketamine legally for depression treatment, he sought more than his regular physician would provide.
This opened the door for unscrupulous providers like Plasencia, who supplied the actor with 20 vials of ketamine, lozenges, and syringes illegally.
This action far exceeded any legitimate medical protocol and demonstrated a flagrant disregard for proper medical standards.
A Los Angeles doctor has agreed to plead guilty to supplying ketamine to actor Matthew Perry. The “Friends” star died of an overdose in October 2023. pic.twitter.com/7LUeneOfwl
— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) June 16, 2025
Text messages revealed during the investigation showed Plasencia’s true motives.
“I wonder how much this moron will pay,” Plasencia wrote.
This clearly prioritized profit over his patient’s health and safety while conspiring with another doctor to exploit Perry’s addiction struggles.
Court documents revealed that Plasencia initially administered ketamine to Perry himself and later instructed the actor’s assistant on how to inject it.
On October 12, 2023, after administering ketamine that caused Perry to experience a dangerous spike in blood pressure, Plasencia still left additional vials with Perry’s assistant rather than halting the treatments.
The case extends beyond just one corrupt doctor. Jasveen Sangha, allegedly a major ketamine dealer nicknamed the “Ketamine Queen,” has pleaded not guilty and awaits trial.
Meanwhile, Erik Fleming, a friend of Perry who acted as a middleman, and Kenneth Iwamasa, Perry’s assistant, have both pleaded guilty and are cooperating with prosecutors, exposing the network that facilitated Perry’s final, fatal dose.
In exchange for his plea, prosecutors will drop three additional counts of distribution and two counts of falsifying records against Plasencia.
This plea bargain demonstrates how the justice system often allows medical professionals who violate their oath to avoid the full consequences of their actions, even when those actions contribute to someone’s death.
Additionally, Perry had battled addiction since his days on “Friends,” repeatedly seeking treatment over the decades.
While the medical establishment pushes experimental treatments like ketamine for depression, this case reveals how easily such drugs can be abused when profit-motivated doctors circumvent proper protocols.
Meanwhile, none of the defendants has been sentenced yet, and it remains to be seen whether justice will truly be served for those who exploited a vulnerable celebrity’s addiction struggles.
