Camilla Jessen
Court says the physician helped fuel Perry’s final relapse.
A physician who admitted supplying ketamine to actor Matthew Perry in the weeks before his death has been sentenced to 30 months in prison, according to News.ro. The ruling is part of a broader prosecution involving five people linked to the actor’s final relapse.
Perry, known worldwide for his role in “Friends,” died in October 2023 at age 54 after being found unconscious in a jacuzzi.
Investigators say the doctor’s actions sharply worsened the actor’s vulnerability in the lead-up to the fatal overdose.
Central findings
The indictment cited by News.ro states that Dr. Salvador Plasencia provided roughly twenty vials of ketamine — a controlled anesthetic — in the short period before Perry’s death.
Although he did not supply the lethal dose, prosecutors argued that his conduct played a significant part in the chain of events.
Plasencia had faced a maximum of 40 years in prison and had already agreed to give up practising medicine.
In a statement to the court, Perry’s mother, Suzanne Perry, and stepfather, Keith Morrison, said: “Matthew’s recovery depended on you saying no.”
His defence team insisted he was “not a bad man,” describing the case as “serious mistakes in his medical decisions regarding the unauthorized use of ketamine.”
Pattern of exploitation
According to the indictment, Plasencia organised the “exploitation” of the actor after Perry relapsed in the autumn of 2023.
Investigators uncovered a message in which the doctor wrote: “I wonder how much this moron will pay,” referring to Perry while purchasing ketamine from another doctor.
Authorities say small vials costing about $12 were resold to the actor for $2,000.
At times, Plasencia administered the drug himself at Perry’s home.
During one such visit, Perry’s blood pressure spiked and caused temporary paralysis. According to the reports, this event did not stop the doctor from leaving additional vials with the actor’s assistant.
Wider legal fallout
Four other people — a second physician, Perry’s personal assistant, an intermediary and a trafficker — have agreed to plead guilty and will be sentenced soon.
The trafficker, Jasveen Sangha, described in Hollywood circles as the “queen of ketamine,” sold the dose that killed Perry and is due to be sentenced next Wednesday.
Perry had spoken openly about his long struggle with addiction.
In his 2022 memoir he wrote that he had undergone 65 rehab stays and spent more than nine million dollars, adding: “I should have been dead.”
Sources: News.ro.
