'Ketamine Queen' agrees to plead guilty to selling fatal dose in Matthew Perry's death
According to the plea agreement, which was signed Aug. 14 and obtained by USA TODAY when it was filed Aug. 18, Sangha, 42, said she would plead guilty to five charges: one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury.
Per prosecutors, Sangha faces a statutory maximum prison sentence of 20 years for the charge related to the drug-involved premises, up to 10 years for each of the three ketamine distribution counts a maximum of 15 years for distributing ketamine that resulted in Perry's death.
Her next court appearance date has yet to be determined.
Prosecutors say that in October 2023, Sangha worked with Erik Fleming − described as Perry's acquaintance − to sell 51 vials of ketamine to Perry's live-in assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa. Iwamasa injected Perry with the short-acting anesthetic. Fleming and Iwamasa previously reached plea deals with prosecutors.
In a statement to USA TODAY, Sangha's attorney Mark Geragos said, "She's taking responsibility for her actions."
Sangha also admitted to selling ketamine that led to the 2019 overdose death of Los Angeles resident Cody McLaury in her plea agreement.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California announced the plea agreement in an Aug. 18 press release and declined to comment when reached by USA TODAY.
Sangha's trial was scheduled to begin in Los Angeles on Sept. 23.
Prosecutors have repeatedly described Sangha as "the Ketamine Queen" of North Hollywood – a neighborhood in Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley – in their filings. She has stored, packaged and distributed drugs such as methamphetamine and ketamine at her home since June 2019, according to her plea agreement.
The most recent plea deal: Doctor admits to supplying Matthew Perry with ketamine
5 people have pleaded guilty in Matthew Perry's death
Sangha was one of five people charged in the 54-year-old "Friends" star's Oct. 28, 2023, death. She'd previously pleaded not guilty to all charges against her, with Geragos maintaining her innocence in a Peacock documentary special that was released in February.
"My client never met Matthew Perry, had nothing to do with Matthew Perry, and all the supposed rumors otherwise are just that: urban legend. This theory that this so-called fatal dose is linked to my client is absolute garbage," Geragos said in an interview that was included in the Peacock special.
In July, Dr. Salvador Plasencia pleaded guilty to four counts of illegal distribution of ketamine. As part of the plea deal, Plasencia acknowledged that he "knowingly distributed ketamine" to Perry in the weeks before his death, behaved in a manner "outside the scope of professional practice," and that the drug distribution lacked "a legitimate medical purpose."
Film producer Erik Fleming, who said he'd distributed Sangha's ketamine that killed Perry, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute ketamine and distribution of ketamine resulting in death. He is slated to appear in court for sentencing on Nov. 12 and faces up to 25 years in prison.
'We did everything we could': Jennifer Aniston says 'Friends' cast mourned before Matthew Perry's death
Kenneth Iwamasa, Perry's live-in assistant, purchased at least $55,000 worth of ketamine for the actor, prosecutors said. The 60-year-old agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and will be sentenced Nov. 19. Prosecutors say he faces a maximum of 15 years in prison.
Dr. Mark Chavez pleaded guilty in October to one count of conspiracy to distribute the dissociative anesthetic drug ketamine. He is scheduled for sentencing on Sept. 17, according to court records, and faces up to 10 years in prison.
U.S. attorneys had accused the San Diego-based Chavez, who used to operate a ketamine clinic, of illegally obtaining ketamine that was sold to Perry by presenting false information and writing a prescription without an unnamed patient's consent, according to Chavez's plea agreement.
Matthew Perry died in his jacuzzi after ketamine injection
On Oct. 24, 2023, "despite less than a week earlier telling a patient at his clinic that (Perry) was too far gone and spiraling in his addiction," Plasencia ordered 10 vials of ketamine from a wholesaler to sell to Perry, according to a grand jury indictment against Plasencia and Sangha. That same day, Fleming also delivered 25 ketamine vials purchased from Sangha to Iwamasa at Perry's house.
In the ensuing days, Iwamasa allegedly injected Perry with six shots of ketamine daily. On Oct. 28, 2023, he injected "at least three shots of the ketamine" obtained from Fleming and Sangha, which "resulted in the death and serious bodily injury of" Perry, the indictment alleges.
An autopsy report released in December 2023 revealed that Perry's death was an accident, with the cause being "the acute effects of ketamine." Contributing factors were drowning, coronary artery disease and the effects of buprenorphine.
The medical examiner noted that the amount of ketamine, a 'dissociative anesthetic," found in his system was as high as 3,540 nanograms per milliliter; "levels for general anesthesia are typically in the 1,000-6,000 ng/ml ranges," the report notes.
If you or someone you know needs help battling a substance abuse addiction, contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
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