Matthew Perry Death Case: Doctor Who Sold Ketamine To Friends Star Sentenced To 30 Months In Prison

A California doctor who was charged with illegally supplying ketamine to Friends star Matthew Perry before his death in 2023 has been sentenced to 30 months in federal prison, according to the BBC. The doctor pleaded guilty in July this year to four counts of distribution of ketamine to the actor.

Dr Salvador Plasencia, who is from Santa Monica, California, was one of five charged in Matthew Perry's death case. He has become the first person to receive a sentence in the fatal drug overdose case. Apart from the prison term, he was also ordered by US District Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett to pay a $5,600 (£4,195) fine. Following the order, Plasencia was immediately taken into federal custody.

Perry's family requested the judge to sentence the doctor for a long term, calling him the "most culpable", and revealed their struggle to understand why he repeatedly supplied the actor with drugs.

Suzanne Morrison, Perry's mother, also spoke in court ahead of Plasencia's sentencing. She opened up about the text messages where the doctor had called Perry a "moron".

"There was nothing moronic about that man," Morrison said, adding that the doctor, who took an oath to protect people, should have saved her son.

Plasencia also expressed regret for what he did and said he has a two-year-old son and wants to raise him right. "I also think about how to explain this to him," he added.

Apologising to Perry's family, the doctor said, "I failed myself. There is no excuse. I can't undo what's been done. I know that. I should have protected him, as his mother said. I'm just so sorry."

Along with Plasencia, the four others charged in the case include another doctor named Dr Mark Chavez, Perry's assistant Kenneth Iwamasa, 'Ketamine Queen' Jasveen Sangha and Erik Fleming, who supplied the ketamine dose. They have also pleaded guilty and will be sentenced in the coming months.

Perry was found dead by his assistant on October 28, 2023, at his Los Angeles home. He was 54. As per toxicology reports, the cause of his death was due to acute ketamine effects, along with drowning and coronary artery disease. There was also an investigation into the drugs involved in the case, followed by multiple arrests.