Photo:Frazer Harrison/Getty
Frazer Harrison/Getty
Matthew Perry: A Hollywood Tragedyreveals the amount of ketamine allegedly in the actor’s body prior tohis death.
The new Peacock documentary tracksMatthew Perry’s life before he died from an accidental overdose on Oct. 28, 2023. According to his autopsy report, theFriendsstar had “high levels of ketamine” in his system, and the documentary claims that was because he received 27 shots of the drug in his final three days.
“Allegedly, you haveDr. [Salvador] Plasenciaproviding ketamine to a live-in assistant who has no medical training whatsoever, and that live-in assistant is administering ketamine to a person whose risk factors are through the roof,” saysMartin Estrada, the former United States Attorney for the State of California Central District who launched the investigation into Perry’s death, in the documentary.
U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada and Matthew Perry.Ryan Sun/AP Photo; Mike Pont/WireImage
Ryan Sun/AP Photo; Mike Pont/WireImage
In mid-October, Estrada says Plasencia “had numerous red flags that were flashing in front of him,” yet he allegedly continued to illegally inject Perry.
“Allegedly, Dr. Plasencia would arrange with Mr. Perry different locations to meet to provide the ketamine,” he says. “On one occasion, they meet in a parking lot in Long Beach, and he administers, in the back of a car, ketamine. Doctors are not supposed to inject people in the back of parking lots.”
“A trained doctor like Dr. Plasencia knew much better,” Estrada continues. “One of the overall themes of our indictment is that all these defendants should have known better. They were taking advantage of an individual and letting their greed drive them to endanger Mr. Perry’s life.”
It was then that Perry experienced an adverse reaction to the drug, and although prosecutors claim Plasenciasaw Perry “freeze up,”Estrada claims the doctor did “nothing about this.”
“He allegedly continues to provide ketamine to Mr. Perry’s live-in assistant, which is then going to be administered to Mr. Perry,” Estrada adds.
Matthew Perry.Bruce Glikas/Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic
Bruce Glikas/Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic
“When it reached a point where Mr. Perry’s request or demand for more ketamine became so great that Dr. Plasencia andDr. [Mark] Chavezcould not provide that amount, they then reached out to an intermediary,” retired Los Angeles Police Department detective Greg Kading claims.
According to a plea agreement Iwamasa made with the Department of Justice, he had injected Perry with six to eight doses of ketamine per day from Oct. 24 to 27. On Oct. 28, Iwamasa gave Pery his first dose of ketamine at 8:30 in the morning and another at 12:45 p.m. that afternoon.
Per court documents, Perry requested another injection 40 minutes later, allegedly telling Iwamasa to “shoot me up with a big one,” and get the hot tub ready. It was either in or near Perry’s jacuzzi that he was given the fatal dose. After running errands, Iwamasa returned to find Perry dead in the water.
Matthew Perry.Matthew Eisman/Getty
Matthew Eisman/Getty
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Three of the five defendants charged in connection with Perry’s death entered guilty pleas: Chavez pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine; Fleming pled guilty to the same charge, along with one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death; Iwamasa pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death.
Plasencia was charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, seven counts of distribution of ketamine and two counts of altering and falsifying documents. He pleaded not guilty.
“Dr. Plasencia was trying to help Mr. Perry and provide medical care that would ease his problems,” his lawyer Stefan Sacks says in the documentary. “Dr. Plasencia wasn’t aware that Mr. Perry was obtaining ketamine from other individuals initially, and when it became apparent that there might be something else going on, he wasn’t providing any ketamine to Mr. Perry at that point.”
Sangha was charged with several offenses, and her lawyer said “she denies the allegations against her” in a statement for the documentary.
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.
source: people.com
