Five people have been charged in connection with Matthew Perry’s death from a ketamine overdose last year, including the actor’s assistant and two doctors, a prosecutor confirmed Thursday.
Two of the people, including one of the doctors charged, have been arrested. Two of the defendants, including Perry’s assistant, have pleaded guilty to charges already. A third person has agreed to plead guilty.
U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada announced the charges Thursday, according to The Associated Press, saying the doctors supplied Perry with a large amount of ketamine and even wondered in a text message how much the former Friends star would be willing to pay.
“These defendants took advantage of Mr. Perry’s addiction issues to enrich themselves. They knew what they were doing was wrong,” Estrada said.
Two of the defendants allegedly exchanged messages soon after Perry’s death referencing ketamine as the cause of death. Estrada said they tried to cover up their involvement in supplying Perry with the drug.
Perry died from the acute effects of the anesthetic ketamine last October at the age of 54. He was found drowned in the heated end of a pool at his Southern California home on Oct. 28, 2023.
In May, Los Angeles police said they were working with federal authorities to figure out the source of the ketamine, an anesthetic with psychedelic properties, Perry had consumed.
His death was deemed an accident with no foul play suspected.
People close to Perry told investigators that he was undergoing ketamine infusion therapy, an experimental treatment used to treat depression and anxiety. But the medical examiner said the levels of ketamine in Perry’s body were in the range used for general anesthesia during surgery, and that his last treatment one and a half weeks earlier wouldn’t explain those levels. The drug is typically metabolized in a matter of hours.
The report said coronary artery disease and buprenorphine, which is used to treat opioid use disorder, also contributed.
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The actor had taken drugs in the past but had been “reportedly clean for 19 months,” according to the report.
‘Friends’ cast (L-R): Courteney Cox, Matthew Perry, Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Lisa Kudrow and Matt LeBlanc in 2000.
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Perry had played pickleball earlier in the day, the report said, and his assistant, who lives with him, found him face down in the pool after returning from errands.
The assistant told investigators Perry had not been sick, had not made any health complaints, and had not shown evidence of recent alcohol or drug use.
Ketamine, a decades-old drug commonly used in surgery, has seen wider use in recent years, used as a treatment for anxiety, depression and pain.
Perry’s 10 seasons on Friends made him one of Hollywood’s most recognizable actors, starring opposite Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc, Lisa Kudrow and David Schwimmer as a friend group in New York. He spoke openly about his struggles with addiction in the years of filming the sitcom.
As Chandler, he played a sarcastic yet insecure and neurotic roommate of Joey and Ross, played by LeBlanc and Schwimmer, respectively. By the series’ end, Chandler is married to Cox’s Monica and they have a family, reflecting the journey of the core cast from single New Yorkers to those who are married and starting families.
The series was one of television’s biggest hits and has taken on a new life — and found surprising popularity with younger fans — in recent years on streaming services.
— with files from The Associated Press
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