Matthew Perry drug dealer 'Ketamine Queen' pleads guilty to selling actor fatal drug dose

A woman dubbed the 'Ketamine Queen' has pleaded guilty to selling a fatal dose of the drug to actorMatthew Perry. The Friends star died aged 54 in October 2023.

Jasveen Sangha, 42, who is a citizen of the UK and the US, had previously pleaded not guilty to the charge but has since changed her plea. She becomes the fifth and final defendant to be charged over the death of the Hollywood star.

Sangha signed a statement to change her plea after agreeing a deal with prosecutors. It comes weeks before her trial was due to start. She pleaded guilty to one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine, and one count of ketamine resulting in death.

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Her lawyer, Mark Geragos said in a brief statement following the deal: “She’s taking responsibility for her actions.” She had previously denied the charges, as she was set to face five counts of ketamine distribution, including one count of distribution resulting in death.

Prior to her change of plea, her defence team had requested her trial to be delayed on four occasions as they wanted more time to examine evidence.

The drug dealer could get a sentence of up to 45 years in prison, with the judge not bound to follow any terms of the plea agreement. However, prosecutors have said they will request less than the maximum. Her sentencing is scheduled for December.

To date, none of the co-defendants have been sentenced. Dr Salvador Plasencia also pleaded guilty in July, while Dr Mark Chavez, Kenneth Iwamasa and Erik Fleming pleaded guilty in exchange for their cooperation.

The actor died in October 2023 aged 54. The star was found unresponsive in a hot tub at his home in the Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles. It was later found that he had overdosed on the drug ketamine. A post-mortem confirmed Perry drowned in his hot tub after taking a lethal dose of ketamine, a powerful anaesthetic increasingly used in mental health treatment.

Investigators say the actor had been undergoing ketamine therapy for depression through legal prescriptions but was taking it up to eight times a day and began seeking additional supplies illicitly.

Court documents allege the actor turned to Sangha after his physician, Dr Salvador Plasencia, refused to continue prescribing high volumes of the drug.

In his 2022 memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, Perry wrote candidly about his decades-long struggle with substance abuse, including multiple stints in rehab and near-death experiences.

He was best known for playing the iconic role of Chandler Bing in the long-running sitcom Friends. He had battled addiction for much of his adult life.

Speaking about his addiction, Friends co-star Jennifer Aniston recently told US magazine Vanity Fair: "We did everything we could when we could. But it almost felt like we'd been mourning Matthew for a long time because his battle with that disease was a really hard one for him to fight.

"As hard as it was for all of us and for the fans, there's a part of me that thinks this is better. I'm glad he's out of that pain."

She went on: "What helped raise me is something I got to put into the world and help other people. If (Friends) was the only thing on my resume, I would be very happy and blessed."

Aniston took on the role of Rachel Green in the hit US sitcom, which also starred Lisa Kudrow, Courteney Cox, David Schwimmer and Matt LeBlanc.

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