A California doctor pleaded guilty Wednesday to supplying ketamine to Matthew Perry in the weeks before the “Friends” star’s overdose death, becoming the fourth of five people charged in connection with the case to admit guilt.
Dr. Salvador Plasencia, 43, entered the plea before U.S. District Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett in a Los Angeles federal courtroom, admitting to four counts of ketamine distribution. The plea deal, filed last month, came just weeks before Plasencia was scheduled to stand trial in August.
Standing beside his attorney, Plasencia responded briefly to the judge’s questions. When asked if his legal team had reviewed all possible outcomes regarding the plea and sentencing, he replied, “They’ve considered everything.”
The high-profile case has drawn national attention since Perry – best known for his role as Chandler Bing on NBC’s “Friends” – died last year from an apparent overdose linked to the powerful anesthetic.
“Dr. Plasencia is profoundly remorseful for the treatment decisions he made while providing ketamine to Matthew Perry,” his attorney, Debra White, said in a statement emailed after the hearing. “He is fully accepting responsibility by pleading guilty to drug distribution. Dr. Plasencia intends to voluntarily surrender his medical license, acknowledging his failure to protect Mr. Perry, a patient who was especially vulnerable due to addiction.”
Plasencia had previously pleaded not guilty. In exchange for his plea, prosecutors agreed to drop three additional counts of ketamine distribution and two counts of falsifying records.
Prosecutors, outlining the charges in court, said Plasencia did not sell Perry the dose that killed him.
They described – and Plasencia admitted – that Perry’s blood pressure spiked and he froze up after receiving one injection from the doctor, who still left more ketamine for Perry’s assistant to administer.
In court filings, Perry was referred to only as “Victim MP.”
The charges carry a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison. There is no guarantee of leniency, though Plasencia is expected to receive a lesser sentence. He has been free on bond since his arrest in August and will remain free until his Dec. 3 sentencing.
Plasencia left the courthouse with his lawyers without speaking to reporters.
“While Dr. Plasencia was not treating Mr. Perry at the time of his death,” White said, “he hopes his case serves as a warning to other medical professionals and leads to stricter oversight and clearer protocols for the rapidly growing at-home ketamine industry in order to prevent future tragedies like this.”
The only remaining defendant who has not reached an agreement with the U.S. attorney’s office is Jasveen Sangha, whom prosecutors allege is a drug dealer known as the “Ketamine Queen.” Authorities say she sold Perry the fatal dose. Her trial is scheduled to begin next month. She has pleaded not guilty.
Prosecutors and co-defendants who have reached plea deals said Plasencia began illegally supplying Perry with a large amount of ketamine about a month before the actor’s death on Oct. 28, 2023.
According to court documents, Plasencia referred to Perry in a text message as a “moron” who could be exploited for money.
Perry’s personal assistant, a friend and another doctor have all agreed to plead guilty in exchange for cooperation in the case against Plasencia and Sangha. None have been sentenced.
Perry was found dead by his assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa. The medical examiner determined ketamine, typically used as a surgical anesthetic, was the primary cause of death.
The actor had been using ketamine legally through his regular doctor in an off-label treatment for depression, a practice that has become increasingly common. But Perry, 54, began seeking more of the drug than his doctor would prescribe.
Plasencia admitted that another patient introduced him to Perry and that he illegally supplied the actor with 20 vials of ketamine totaling 100 mg, along with lozenges and syringes, in the month before Perry’s death.
He also admitted to enlisting another doctor, Mark Chavez, to help provide the drug, according to court filings.
“I wonder how much this moron will pay,” Plasencia texted Chavez, according to the latter’s plea agreement.
After selling Perry the drugs for $4,500, Plasencia allegedly asked Chavez if he could continue supplying them so the two could become Perry’s “go-to” providers, prosecutors said.
Perry had battled addiction for years, dating back to his time on “Friends,” which aired from 1994 to 2004 and made him one of television’s most recognizable stars. He starred alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer.
