The physician from Los Angeles who illegally supplied ketamine to Matthew Perry before the actor’s overdose demise has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison.
On Wednesday, Dr. Salvador Plasencia, aged 44, admitted to illegally providing the Friends star, Matthew Perry, with ketamine in the month leading up to his unfortunate death in 2023.
Matthew Perry, known for his role as Chandler Bing on NBC’s sitcom Friends, passed away at 54. He had a long history of battling addiction throughout his life, especially following his rise to fame.
Perry also faced challenges concerning his mental health and was legally using ketamine, a surgical anesthetic, as a treatment for depression.
When Perry’s regular physician declined to prescribe ketamine in the quantities he desired, Perry turned to Dr. Plasencia to acquire the drug unlawfully.
Despite being aware of Perry’s addiction struggles, Plasencia proceeded to supply him with the drugs.
Court documents revealed that Plasencia confessed to supplying the drugs and even sent a text to another doctor referring to Perry as a ‘moron’ who could be financially exploited.
On 28 October 2023, Perry was discovered deceased at his Los Angeles residence, with the medical examiner determining that ketamine was the primary cause of death.
During Plasencia’s sentencing, the judge pointed out that though Plasencia did not supply the fatal dose of ketamine, his actions significantly contributed to the actor’s demise.
“You and others helped Mr. Perry on the road to such an ending by continuing to feed his ketamine addiction,” she stated.
“You exploited Mr. Perry’s addiction for your own profit.”
For his involvement and contribution to Perry’s death, Plasencia received a custodial sentence after pleading guilty in June to four counts of supplying ketamine.
Plasencia will now serve a 30-month prison term.
At the sentencing hearing, Perry’s mother and two half-sisters, including his sister Madeline Morrison, delivered tearful victim impact statements.
“The world mourns my brother,” Madeline said. “He was everyone’s favorite friend.”
Plasencia is the first of five defendants connected to Perry’s death to receive sentencing.
The remaining four defendants are scheduled for their sentencing hearings in the upcoming months.