'Friends' star Matthew Perry's death one year later: What to know about the investigation

Matthew Perry's death remains an open federal investigation one year after the beloved sitcom star died at home of a ketamine overdose.

A recovering addict, Perry, 54, grappled with substance abuse issues throughout his life, and admitted to spending upwards of $9 million "trying to get sober" in his 2022 memoir, "Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing."

Perry died on Oct. 28, 2023, after an apparent drowning in the hot tub at his house in the Pacific Palisades, authorities confirmed to Fox News Digital at the time. Months later, when the toxicology report was finalized as part of his autopsy, "trace amounts of ketamine" were detected in the stomach contents," the report said. "The exact method of intake in Mr. Perry's case is unknown." 

In August, authorities arrested and charged a handful of suspects, including two doctors, in connection with Perry's death. 

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Matthew Perry died on Oct. 28, 2023, due to the "acute effects of ketamine." (Getty Images)

The Fortune of 'Friends'

Perry, who was born in Massachusetts and raised in Canada, was 24 years old when he began portraying Chandler Bing on the sitcom "Friends."

"Friends," one of the most-watched shows on television, first debuted on NBC in 1994 and starred Perry, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer. The hit show aired from 1994 until 2004, and while each cast member was paid $1 million per episode in the last few years of airing, they continued to make millions annually in syndication.

Matthew Perry portrayed Chandler Bing on "Friends," which first aired in 1994. (Jon Ragel/Getty Images)

Perry and his co-stars were each earning $20 million annually in syndication income from Warner Brothers for their roles as of 2018, a number which was reportedly even higher after the show's reruns were picked up by Netflix, according to Marketplace.

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The six actors had a deal that paid them each 2% of syndication income from "Friends," when Warner Bros. was pulling in $1 billion annually from streaming the show, the outlet reported.

During a 2021 reunion show, Perry shared more insight into the cast's dynamic bond.

"The best way that I can describe it is after the show was over, at a party or any kind of social gathering, if one of us bumped into each other, that was it. That was the end of the night. You just sat with the person all night long and that was it," Perry said.

Matthew Perry starred alongside Lisa Kudrow, Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer in "Friends." (Hulton Archive)

"You apologized to the people you were with, but they had to understand you had met somebody special to you, and you were going to talk to that person for the rest of the night. And that’s the way it worked."

What happened?

The morning of Perry's death, his assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa allegedly administered a shot of ketamine to the actor around 8:30, according to Iwamasa's plea agreement. By 12:45 p.m., Perry had instructed Iwamasa to give him another injection while Perry watched a movie. 

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Roughly 40 minutes later, Perry requested another injection, allegedly telling Iwamasa, "Shoot me up with a big one," according to the plea agreement.

Kenneth Iwamasa, Matthew Perry's assistant, allegedly sourced and injected Perry's fatal dose of ketamine. (Apex/Mega)

Iwamasa administered a third injection to Perry while the 54-year-old was near or in a hot tub. Iwamasa then left the home to run errands for Perry. When he returned, the assistant found Perry "face down" in the Jacuzzi, deceased.

Jasveen Sangha, aka "The Ketamine Queen," was arrested and charged with multiple offenses in Matthew Perry's death. (Jojo Korsh/BFA.com/Shutterstock)

Perry's death was caused by "acute effects of ketamine," according to his autopsy completed on Oct. 29. Drowning, coronary artery disease and buprenorphine effects were listed as contributing factors.

The Pacific Palisades home has since recently been sold in an off-market deal for $8.5 million to a real estate developer.

Ketamine Queen and Accomplices

Perry's assistant and alleged drug dealers attempted to cover up the "Friends" star's ketamine overdose in the days after his death.

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Perry's assistant, Iwamasa, along with middleman Erik Fleming and "Ketamine Queen" Jasveen Sangha, worked to get rid of evidence showing the actor was injected multiple times with ketamine provided by the trio on Oct. 28, according to a plea agreement obtained by Fox News Digital.

Sangha instructed Fleming to delete all text messages shared between the two and updated Signal – an encrypted messaging app – settings to automatically delete messages, the court docs read. The ketamine allegedly provided by Sangha and delivered to Iwamasa by Fleming killed Perry on Oct. 28. 

Jasveen Sangha, the "Ketamine Queen," rented a home in North Hollywood for the purpose of manufacturing, storing and distributing controlled substances, according to the indictment. (United States Attorney's Office)

Some of the ketamine lozenges Iwamasa obtained were from a fraudulent prescription written by Dr. Mark Chavez. (United States Attorney's Office)

Iwamasa and Fleming both accepted a plea deal while Sangha pleaded not guilty and will face a joint trial with Dr. Salvador Plasencia. Plasencia allegedly taught Perry's assistant how to inject the actor with the drug.

Fleming pleaded guilty on Aug. 8 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death. Fleming admitted in court documents that he distributed the ketamine that killed Perry. He also agreed to a plea deal.

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Earlier this month, San Diego-based doctor Dr. Mark Chavez pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute ketamine in connection to Perry's death. Chavez faces a maximum sentence of 10 years. He remains out on bond until his sentencing after turning over his medical license and passport. 

Chavez admitted to selling ketamine to Dr. Plasencia, including ketamine that he had diverted from his former clinic. Chavez previously ran a ketamine clinic and allegedly submitted a bogus prescription in the name of a former patient to secure the drug.

Dr. Mark Chavez, a physician from San Diego, agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine as part of his plea agreement. (Associated Press)

Meanwhile, the "Ketamine Queen" was charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine along with one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, one count of possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, one count of possession with intent to distribute ketamine and five counts of distribution of ketamine. 

A Lasting Legacy

Perry was candid about his substance abuse addiction, and admitted in his memoir that he attempted 15 stints in rehab and underwent 14 surgeries for addiction-related medical issues. He was also on life support for a brief period and in a coma for two weeks.

Following Perry's death, his family created The Matthew Perry Foundation with a goal to raise awareness, reduce stigma and improve treatment options for people struggling with addiction. His stepfather, Keith Morrison, said Perry wanted to "be remembered for doing something to help people suffering from addiction."

Matthew Perry's stepfather, Keith Morrison, arrived on scene at Perry's house the night he died. (Getty Images)

"When [Matthew] suddenly died, it was incredibly shocking.… Anybody who has lost a child will tell you that, even if you are in some way prepared for the possibility, it’s shattering," Morrison told Hello! Canada. "What we have decided to do is hang on to that determination and try to do something useful."

His sister, Caitlin, now serves as the foundation's executive director while the family expands outreach.

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"The work that I'm doing now is very selfish because it kind of feels like I'm sitting right next to Matthew, working with him every day on something that was important to him," Caitlin told the outlet.

"I have this treasure of getting to keep him very, very close to my life all the time, which is wonderful."