(Los Angeles) Five people, including two doctors, are being sued in connection with the death of the star actor of the series FriendsMatthew Perry, after overdosing on ketamine last year, authorities said Thursday.
“These defendants took advantage of Mr. Perry’s addiction problems to enrich themselves,” said federal prosecutor Martin Estrada.
The actor, who played Chandler Bing in the cult series, died in October 2023, due to the “acute effects” of taking ketamine. He was found unconscious in a jacuzzi at his Los Angeles home.
This anesthetic, sometimes diverted for stimulating or euphoric purposes, was taken by the actor in a supervised manner as part of therapy sessions for depression. But the actor “fell back into addiction in the fall of 2023,” according to Mr. Estrada.
PHOTO DAMIAN DOVARGANES, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Federal prosecutor Martin Estrada
Among the defendants are his personal assistant, two “unscrupulous” doctors and a dealer known in Hollywood as the “Queen of Ketamine,” who took advantage of his weaknesses, the prosecutor said.
The doctors allegedly illegally supplied Mr Perry with approximately 20 vials of ketamine in exchange for $55,000 in cash over the course of just two months.
One of the doctors, Salvador Plasencia, faces up to 120 years in prison.
“Exploitation”
The 42-year-old doctor “knew what he was doing was harming Mr. Perry,” the prosecutor insisted. He told a patient that the actor was “going off the rails.”
He organized the “exploitation” of a sick individual, added Anne Milgram of the DEA, the federal anti-drug agency. The vials of ketamine cost about $12 to the doctors involved, but were resold “for $2,000” to the actor.
“I wonder how much this moron is going to pay,” Dr. Plasencia wrote in a text message unearthed by the investigation in September 2023. After Mr. Perry’s death, he “falsified medical records” to try to legitimize his actions, according to the prosecutor’s office.
The dealer at the heart of the case, Jasveen Sangha, is facing life in prison. This 41-year-old American-British sold the bottle of ketamine that killed the actor.
During a search of his home, investigators found 80 vials of ketamine, methamphetamine, cocaine, vials of Xanax and other illegally obtained drugs.
The investigation revealed that one of his clients had already died of a ketamine overdose in 2019, according to Mr. Estrada.
The defendants used code names among themselves to refer to the anesthetic, the prosecutor explained. They referred to it as “Dr Pepper” or “cans”.
Prosecuted together, Mr. Plasencia and Mr.me Sangha is due to appear in a Los Angeles court Thursday afternoon.
Purple hair and a Nirvana sweater, Mme Sangha pleaded not guilty in a Los Angeles court on Thursday.
Her trial has been set for October 15, until which time she will be held in custody to prevent any risk of absconding. According to the prosecution, this dealer regularly travels to Mexico, and was on vacation in Tokyo two weeks after Matthew Perry’s death.
In his shirt, Mr. Plasencia also pleaded not guilty. He was released on $100,000 bail, with a requirement to inform his patients of the charges against him. His trial is scheduled for October 8.
The other three defendants are facing separate charges and have agreed to plead guilty.
Shock
A true cultural phenomenon, the series broadcast between 1994 and 2004 left its mark on a whole generation of viewers.
It tells the adventures of a group of happy friends – Rachel, Monica, Phoebe, Joey, Ross and Chandler – in New York, interspersed with romantic relationships, notably between Monica and Chandler and the interminable saga between Rachel and Ross.
But behind the scenes, Matthew Perry has long hidden a malaise behind his jovial persona. He has long struggled with his addiction to medication and alcohol.
In his 2022 memoir, he said he underwent 65 withdrawal sessions, spending more than $9 million.
He had also undergone several surgeries related to his drug addiction issues, including a seven-hour colon operation in 2018, going so far as to say: “I should be dead.”
In a television appearance shortly before his death, the actor surprised the audience by admitting to having suffered from severe anxiety “every night” while filming Friends.
His unexpected death sparked a flood of tributes in Hollywood. His comrades FriendsJennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer, said they were “totally devastated.”
Catapulted to glory by FriendsMatthew Perry has also starred in comedies such as Fools Rush In And The Whole Nine Yards.