Matthew Perry’s family have issued a warning to the people accused of supplying the Friends star with the fatal dose of ketamine that killed him in October 2023.
Appearing on the Today show on Monday (October 28) – exactly one year after Perry’s death, aged 54 – his family sat down with host Savannah Guthrie to reflect on the actor’s legacy as well as the justice they hope will be served at the trial set for March 2025 against two of the five people who allegedly supplied him with the drugs.
“I’m thrilled,” Perry’s mother, Suzanne Morrison, said of the trial.
“What I’m hoping, and I think the agencies that got involved in this are hoping, that people who have put themselves in the business of supplying people with the drugs that will kill them are now on notice,” Perry’s stepfather, Keith Morrison, added.
“It doesn’t matter what your professional credentials are, you are going down, baby.”
In the months following Perry’s death from the acute effects of ketamine, an investigation was opened at a federal and local level to look into who supplied the actor with the drug.
Before his passing, Perry had been on ketamine infusion therapy as a treatment for depression and anxiety, but it was ruled that the therapy wasn’t the cause of his death. Prosecutors, instead, discovered that the actor had been taking unsupervised doses of the drug and that his addiction was “out of control,” according to NBC News.
After a seven-month investigation, five people were arrested and charged in connection with Perry’s death.
Dr Salvador Plasencia is accused of having provided the drug to the actor, and Perry’s assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, injected him on the day of his death, filings stated. Dr Mark Chavez, owner of a San Diego ketamine clinic, is charged in the death. Erik Fleming, a friend of a friend of Perry’s, allegedly provided the drug, along with Jasveen Sangha, a seller referred known as the “ketamine queen.”
Chavez, Iwamasa and Fleming have all pled guilty to their charges.
Prosecutors offered lesser charges to the three in exchange for their cooperation as they go after Plasencia and Sangha, who they have accused of taking advantage of Perry’s addiction despite being aware of his struggles and attempts to get sober.
Plasencia and Sangha, who have pleaded not guilty to their charges, will stand trial next March.
If you have been affected by this article, you can contact the following organisations for support: actiononaddiction.org.uk, mind.org.uk, nhs.uk/livewell/mentalhealth, mentalhealth.org.uk.
