A California doctor has been sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for illegally supplying ketamine to Matthew Perry in the weeks before the actor’s death, bringing the first major resolution in a criminal case that has drawn national scrutiny since the “Friends” star died in October 2023. Dr Salvador Plasencia, 44, pleaded guilty earlier this year to four counts of distributing the powerful anaesthetic outside the course of legitimate medical practice. He was taken into custody immediately after sentencing in a Los Angeles federal courtroom, where prosecutors said the doctor knowingly exploited a vulnerable patient for profit.
U.S. District Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett told the court that Plasencia had a duty to act as a safeguard and instead became a source of harm. The judge said the physician “helped Mr Perry on the road to such an ending,” describing the conduct as a serious breach of medical ethics. Beyond the prison term, the court imposed a fine and ordered two years of supervised release. Plasencia surrendered his medical licence prior to sentencing and will not be permitted to return to practice.
The hearing included an emotional statement from Perry’s mother, who told the doctor that her son had needed protection, not someone willing to feed his addiction. She said Perry had trusted doctors to draw boundaries he could not set for himself and that Plasencia had failed the most basic expectations of the profession. Perry’s stepfather echoed those sentiments in written remarks submitted to the court, describing the family’s deep sense of betrayal.
According to federal filings, Plasencia began supplying ketamine to Perry on 30 September 2023. That day, he was told the actor was seeking treatments and was willing to pay large sums in cash. Rather than decline or refer Perry to a specialist, the doctor contacted another physician to purchase vials of ketamine and related supplies. He then drove to Perry’s Los Angeles home, administered an injection and left additional vials with Perry’s long-time assistant. The transaction, investigators said, involved thousands of dollars in cash.