Doctor charged in connection with Friends star Matthew Perry's death pleads guilty

A doctor charged in connection with the death of Friends star Matthew Perry has pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiring to distribute the drug ketamine.

Dr Mark Chavez appeared in a Los Angeles court on Wednesday to enter his plea.

The 54-year-old could face up to 10 years in prison.

Perry was found dead at his home in Los Angeles by his live-in assistant Kenneth Iwamasa on 28 October last year.

A medical examiner later ruled that ketamine was the primary cause of death.

The 54-year-old actor had been taking the drug six to eight times a day before he died, according to court documents.

Chavez's lawyer Matthew Binninger said after his first court appearance in August that he is "incredibly remorseful" and is "trying to do everything in his power to right the wrong that happened here".

Five people, including Chavez, have been charged in connection with Perry's death.

The other four are Iwamasa, an acquaintance of the actor named Eric Fleming, another doctor named Salvador Plasencia, known as "Dr P", and Jasveen Sangha, who was referred to in documents as the "Ketamine Queen".

Chavez is the third person to have pleaded guilty in the case.

Iwamasa has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, causing death.

He's also admitted repeatedly injecting Perry with ketamine without medical training, including on the day he died.

Meanwhile, Fleming, 54, has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death.

He is due to be sentenced on 30 October.

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Chavez, Fleming and Iwamasa were offered lesser charges in exchange for their cooperation as prosecutors go after their main targets in the case - Plasencia and Sangha.

Although Chavez faces up to a decade in prison when he is sentenced on 2 April next year, he is likely to be sentenced to far less because of the plea and his cooperation with prosecutors.

Perry had been seeking treatment for depression and anxiety when he became addicted to intravenous ketamine last autumn.

According to the initial indictment, Plasencia is said to have conspired with Chavez to supply Perry with large amounts of ketamine, writing in a message "I wonder how much this moron will pay" and "let's find out".

In his plea agreement, Chavez admitted to selling ketamine to Plasencia, from Santa Monica, having diverted it from his former ketamine clinic.

In total, he transferred 22 viles of liquid ketamine and nine ketamine lozenges to Plasencia who allegedly sold them to Perry, the court heard.

Plasencia is set to face a trial on 4 March next year, after allegedly using Iwamasa to distribute ketamine to the actor from September to October last year for $55,000 (£42,000).

During the last few weeks of his life, Perry "turned to street dealer" Fleming who is said to have sourced ketamine from Sangha.

The ketamine supplied by Sangha was ultimately the dose that took Perry's life, a Drug Enforcement Administrator previously claimed.

Although Chavez faces up to a decade in prison when he is sentenced on 2 April next year, he is likely to be sentenced to far less because of the plea and his cooperation with prosecutors.

Plasencia is facing a maximum sentence of 120 years in federal prison, while Sangha is facing life imprisonment.

(c) Sky News 2024: Doctor charged in connection with Friends star Matthew Perry's death pleads guilty