Doctor Responsible for Issuing Ketamine to Matthew Perry Sentenced to 30 Months Behind Bars

The California-based doctor will spend more than two years in prison for his role in the “Friends” star’s fatal overdose.

California-based Dr. Salvador Plasencia faced up to 40 years behind bars, but managed to only get 2.5 years.

On Wednesday (Dec. 3), Dr. Salvador Plasencia was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison for illegally issuing ketamine to Matthew Perry, who died of an overdose in 2023 while in a jacuzzi.

Plasencia, who ran an urgent-care clinic outside of Los Angeles, pleaded guilty in July to four felony counts of illegal distribution of ketamine. He was facing up to four decades behind bars for the crime. Not only will he serve in prison, he will tackle two years of probation.

Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett emphasized how Plasencia and others on Perry’s team fed the actor’s ketamine addiction, which led to his death. During the sentencing, Judge Garnett said Plasencia exploited the actor’s addiction for his own profit.

Perry’s family, notably his mother and two half sisters, gave victim impact statements before Plasencia’s sentencing. 

“The world mourns my brother,” Madeleine Morrison said during her tearful statement. “He was everyone’s favorite friend.”

The doctor admitted to taking advantage of Perry and his addiction. According to court filings, he texted another doctor and referred to Perry as a “moron” who could be exploited for his money. 

Prosecutors originally asked for three years, while the defense asked for only a day in prison along with probation. 

Plasencia was the first of five defendants to be sentenced, according to CNN. The other four defendants, who all pleaded guilty, include:

• Dr. Mark Chavez, a doctor who worked alongside Plasencia to supply Perry with the ketamine

• Kenneth Iwamasa, Perry’s assistant who injected Perry with the drug despite not having any medical experience

• Erik Fleming, acquainted with Perry through a mutual friend who distributed the ketamine to the actor

• Jasveen Sangha, considered the “Ketamine Queen” of North Hollywood who ran an operation out of her home

These four fellow defendants all reached plea agreements, and will receive their own sentencing in the coming months.

The "Ketamine Queen" of North Hollywood, real name Jasveen Sangha, ran her operation out of her home.

Perry was taking ketamine legally as a treatment for depression. When his regular doctor wouldn’t provide the amount of ketamine he wanted, he turned to Plasencia who knowingly supplied the drug when Perry struggled with addiction. 

The “Friends” actor was found by his assistant floating face down and lifeless in the jacuzzi of his Los Angeles home in October 2023. An autopsy report stated that he died from the “acute effects” of the prescription anesthetic.