One of two doctors charged in the ketamine overdose death of “Friends” star Matthew Perry is scheduled for sentencing Wednesday in downtown Los Angeles on federal charges of illegal distribution of the surgical anesthetic.
Salvador Plasencia, 43, of Santa Monica, pleaded guilty in July to four federal counts of distribution of ketamine. The dissociative anesthetic drug is used as a therapy for depression and chronic pain, but also has some hallucinogenic effects and can distort sight and sound.
The former doctor faces up to 40 years in prison and a fine of at least $2 million, according to his plea agreement. Plasencia was set for trial in August until the doctor agreed to plead guilty to four counts of distribution of ketamine.
His attorneys have repeatedly said the doctor was not treating Perry at the time of his death in October 2023.
“Dr. Plasencia is profoundly remorseful for the treatment decisions he made while providing ketamine to Matthew Perry,” his attorney said in an earlier statement. “He is fully accepting responsibility by pleading guilty to drug distribution. Dr. Plasencia intends to voluntarily surrender his medical license, acknowledging his failure to protect Mr. Perry, a patient who was especially vulnerable due to addiction.”
Five defendants were charged in Perry’s death and pleaded guilty. Jasveen Sangha, aka the Ketamine Queen, faces up to 65 years in prison when she is sentenced Feb. 25.
Perry, 54, was found dead Oct. 28, 2023, by an assistant in a jacuzzi at his Pacific Palisades home. The medical examiner ruled that ketamine was the primary cause of death.
The actor had been using the drug through his regular doctor in a legal but off-label treatment for depression, which has become increasingly common. Perry began seeking more ketamine than his doctor would give him.
Plasencia admitted in his plea agreement that another patient connected him with Perry, and that starting about a month before Perry’s death, he illegally supplied the actor with 20 vials of ketamine totaling 100 mg of the drug, along with ketamine lozenges and syringes.
He admitted to enlisting another doctor, Mark Chavez, to supply the drug for him, according to the court filings. After selling the drugs to Perry for $4,500, Plasencia allegedly asked Chavez if he could keep supplying them so they could become Perry’s “go-to,” prosecutors said.
Perry struggled with addiction for years, dating back to his time on “Friends,” when he became one of the biggest stars of his generation as Chandler Bing. He starred alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer for 10 seasons from 1994 to 2004 on NBC’s megahit.
