Doctor Admits to Illegally Supplying Ketamine to the Actor and His Assistant
One of the physicians charged in connection with actor Matthew Perry’s fatal ketamine overdose will plead guilty to federal drug distribution charges, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday.
Dr. Salvador Plasencia, who operated an urgent care clinic in Malibu, is expected to enter a guilty plea to four counts of distributing ketamine without a legitimate medical purpose. The charges carry a statutory maximum sentence of 40 years in federal prison.
The plea agreement identifies Plasencia as a key figure in the drug supply chain that led to the October 2023 death of Perry, best known for his role on the television series Friends. Perry, 54, was found unresponsive in the jacuzzi of his Los Angeles home on Oct. 28, 2023. An autopsy determined he died from the acute effects of ketamine.
According to the agreement filed in federal court, Plasencia provided vials, lozenges, and syringes of ketamine to Perry and the actor’s personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, between Sept. 30 and Oct. 12, 2023. Plasencia admitted that his actions failed to meet accepted medical standards and were not based on legitimate treatment needs.
The plea deal details numerous transactions and interactions, including one incident in which Plasencia administered ketamine to Perry in a Long Beach parking lot. He also supplied doses to Iwamasa, fully aware that the assistant lacked medical training but would be administering the drug.
Despite a visible adverse reaction during an October 12 visit, when Perry’s blood pressure spiked and his body “froze up,” Plasencia continued to provide ketamine. He later texted Iwamasa about leaving additional supplies with a nurse while he was away for the weekend.
While Plasencia was not the source of the ketamine that killed Perry, another defendant, Eric Fleming, admitted in court to distributing the fatal dose. Fleming pleaded guilty in August 2024 to conspiracy and distribution charges and is set to be sentenced in November.
Iwamasa also entered a guilty plea in August 2024 to conspiracy to distribute ketamine resulting in death. He is scheduled for sentencing in November as well.
Dr. Mark Chavez, another physician involved in the case, pleaded guilty in October 2024 to ketamine distribution. Chavez had supplied ketamine to Plasencia and is due for sentencing in September.
Court documents reveal that Perry asked Iwamasa to help acquire ketamine in September 2023, offering cash and reimbursement. The actor was introduced to Plasencia by a mutual acquaintance who described Perry as a “high-profile person” willing to pay “cash and lots of thousands.”
Even after being told Perry’s drug use was “spiraling out of control,” Plasencia continued to provide ketamine, prosecutors said.
Trial for Plasencia had been set for August prior to the plea agreement.
