Dr. Salvador Plasencia admitted guilt in federal court for distributing ketamine to Matthew Perry, becoming the second doctor to plead guilty in connection with the «Friends» star’s death.
Dr. Salvador Plasencia, one of Matthew Perry’s ketamine providers, pleaded guilty Wednesday to four counts of distribution of the dissociative drug.
Plasencia, 43, admitted to four counts of distribution of ketamine, a plea deal he agreed to last month. Standing before Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett in a Los Angeles federal court, Plasencia said his legal team had «considered everything» when it came to the plea and subsequent sentencing.
Prosecutors agreed to drop three additional counts against Plasencia in exchange for his guilty plea. He had been scheduled to go on trial next month alongside Jasveen Sangha, aka «The Ketamine Queen.»
MATTHEW PERRY DOCTOR AGREES TO PLEAD GUILTY ON FOUR COUNTS IN CONNECTION TO STAR’S DEATH
The «Friends» star died on Oct. 28, 2023, after an apparent drowning in the hot tub at his Pacific Palisades home, authorities confirmed to Fox News Digital at the time. He was 54.
«Dr. Plasencia is profoundly remorseful for the treatment decisions he made while providing ketamine to Matthew Perry», his attorney, Karen Goldstein, said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital.
«He is fully accepting responsibility by pleading guilty to drug distribution. Dr. Plasencia intends to voluntarily surrender his medical license, acknowledging his failure to protect Mr. Perry, a patient who was especially vulnerable due to addiction.»
She added, «While Dr. Plasencia was not treating Mr. Perry at the time of his death, he hopes his case serves as a warning to other medical professionals and leads to stricter oversight and clear protocols for the rapidly growing at-home ketamine industry in order to prevent future tragedies like this one.»
Rither Alabre, partner at Blank Rome’s White Collar Defense & Investigations Group and former prosecutor, told Fox News Digital that Plasencia’s plea is important for the case, and also sends a message.
