Entertainment

5 People Charged For Matthew Perry’s Death

2024-08-16 , 4:55 pm

The entertainment industry has brought us all sorts of news recently. First, we had Kanye West’s ex-chief of Staff revealing that the celebrity was addicted to nitrous gas. Now, we have five people charged in connection with the late actor Matthew Perry’s death.

Here’s what you need to know about the five people who were charged, and why they were charged.

TLDR: Who is Matthew Perry?

Unless you were living under a rock, you’ve probably heard of Matthew Perry. If you haven’t heard of the late actor, fret not — Goody Feed is here to catch you up.

The actor first gained international fame in his role as Chandler Bing on the popular sitcom Friends. Yes, that sitcom that your friends (pun not intended) have been asking you to watch for ages.

He’s the one seated all the way on the right in this photo of the Friends cast — the one in a red shirt and khaki pants.

For most of his life, Perry suffered from addiction to alcohol and various drugs. He passed away in October last year after he was found unresponsive in his home in Los Angeles.

Investigations later revealed that Perry’s death was caused by a ketamine overdose.

And now, five people are being charged in connection with his death. In particular, they’re being charged generally for supplying drugs to the late actor.

Perry’s Personal Assistant: Kenneth Iwamasa

The first on the list of people charged in connection with Perry’s death is Perry’s live-in personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa.

Ah… It’s always the personal assistant — just like a Hollywood movie.

So, what exactly was Iwamasa charged with?

He was charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death, which he pleaded guilty to. The personal assistant has also admitted to administering multiple ketamine injections to the late actor.

Even the ketamine injection administered to Perry on the day of his death was administered by Iwamasa. For all we know, that ketamine injection could have been the final nail in the coffin.

To make things worse, the 59-year-old personal assistant did not have any medical training or specific knowledge of how to administer controlled substances. In other words, having Iwamasa administer the ketamine injections for Perry was akin to having a child administer the ketamine injections.

But that’s not all. Iwamasa didn’t just administer the ketamine, he was also involved with obtaining the ketamine; communicating in coded language with the others who were charged to obtain ketamine.

Iwamasa could be sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment.

The First Doctor: Dr Salvador Plasencia

Another person who was charged in connection with Perry’s death was one of Perry’s doctors — Dr Salvador Plasencia.

The doctor was charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, seven counts of distribution of ketamine and two counts of altering and falsifying documents or records related to the federal investigation.

And of course, he pleaded not guilty.

Dr Plasencia, commonly known as “Dr P”, is a doctor in the Santa Monica area. The doctor allegedly facilitated drug transfers between himself and Perry’s personal assistant, Iwamasa.

According to an indictment filed, Dr Plasencia allegedly used encrypted messaging applications and coded language to discuss such drug transfers. For instance, he refers to ketamine as “Dr Pepper”, “cans” and “bots”.

It’s a little like when you were younger in school and frequently used code names to gossip with your friends about someone both of you didn’t like.

The indictment also revealed the text messages between Dr Plasencia and the others who were involved with the ketamine sales to Perry. One of the texts Dr Plasencia sent included: “I wonder how much this moron will pay” and “Let’s find out”.

In court, Dr Plasencia’s attorney shared that the doctor was operating with the best of medical intentions and that his actions did not amount to criminal misconduct.

Well, we’ll wait and see how true that is. If the doctor is found guilty, he is liable for imprisonment for up to ten years on each ketamine distribution-related count, and up to 20 years for each records falsification count.

The Second Doctor: Dr Mark Chavez

Yes, you read that right — there’s not just one doctor charged in connection with Perry’s death, but two. The second doctor is Dr Mark Chavez, a doctor from San Diego, who used to run a ketamine clinic.

The doctor pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine. But, what exactly did Dr Chavez do?

Well, as we found out earlier, Dr Plasencia sold ketamine to Iwamasa — the question is where did Dr Plasencia get his ketamine?

This is where Dr Chavez comes into the picture. Dr Chavez sold ketamine that he had previously obtained to Dr Plasencia, by writing a fraudulent prescription.

It’s the kind of thing you always see in movies.

The doctor could be sentenced to 10 years’ imprisonment.

The Friend: Erik Fleming

Now, this one is an awkward one to write about — another person who was charged was a friend of Perry’s, named Erik Fleming.

I suppose he’s not that much of a “friend” after all.

The 54-year-old pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death. Fleming had allegedly sold ketamine to Iwamasa, which then, of course, gave the ketamine to Perry.

How much ketamine did Fleming sell to Iwamasa, you might ask. Well, according to the prosecutors, Fleming delivered 50 vials of ketamine for Perry’s use in total. And here’s the kicker — half of the vials were handed over to Iwamasa merely four days before Perry’s death.

You can just imagine how much ketamine that is.

Fleming could be sentenced to 25 years’ imprisonment.

Drug Dealer: Jasveen Sangha

So, what we know now is this — Iwamasa administered ketamine injections to Perry and helped Perry obtain the ketamine. The ketamine obtained by Iwamasa came mainly from Dr Plasencia and Erik Fleming. We know that Dr Plasencia’s ketamine supply came from Dr Chavez. So, the only question that remains is this — where does Fleming’s ketamine supply come from?

That’s where the fifth person who was charged, a drug dealer named Jasveen Sangha, comes into the picture. Apparently, Fleming’s ketamine supply came from Sangha.

Sangha is allegedly a drug dealer who used her North Hollywood residence as a ketamine distribution point — including the ketamine which killed the late actor. She’s so notorious as a ketamine dealer that she’s even known as the “Ketamine Queen”.

The 41-year-old was charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, one count of maintaining 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.

That’s a lot of charges — all of which, Sangha pleaded not guilty to.

If found guilty, Sangha faces anywhere between ten years’ imprisonment to life imprisonment.