One of two doctors charged in the investigation of the death of Friends star Matthew Perry has pleaded guilty to conspiring to distribute the surgical anesthetic ketamine.
Dr Mark Chavez, 54, signed a plea agreement with prosecutors in August and is the third person to plead guilty in the aftermath of the Canadian actor’s fatal overdose last year.
Chavez, of San Diego, entered the guilty plea on Wednesday in a federal court in Los Angeles.
Prosecutors offered lesser charges to Chavez and two others in exchange for their cooperation as they go after two targets they deem more responsible for the overdose death: another doctor and an alleged dealer that they say was known as the “ketamine queen” of Los Angeles.
Chavez had been out on bond after turning over his passport and surrendering his medical license, among other conditions.
Perry died at the age of 54 in October last year following a fatal overdose of the drug, which can be used to treat depression. His death sent shockwaves through the industry and sparked a seven-month investigation by LA authorities.
As a result of the investigation Chavez was arrested alongside Dr Salvador Plasencia and Jasveen Sangha – an alleged Hollywood drug dealer dubbed “the ketamine queen.”
Plasencia is charged with illegally selling ketamine to Perry in the month before his death, and authorities say Sangha sold the actor the lethal dose of ketamine. Both have already pleaded not guilty and are awaiting trial.
Also working with federal prosecutors are Perry’s assistant, who admitted to helping him obtain and inject ketamine, and a Perry acquaintance, who admitted to acting as a drug messenger and middleman.
Chavez previously admitted in his plea agreement that he obtained ketamine from his former clinic and from a wholesale distributor where he submitted a fraudulent prescription. His lawyer Matthew Binninger said in August that he is “incredibly remorseful” and is “trying to do everything in his power to right the wrong that happened here.”
Following the guilty plea, Chavez could get up to 10 years in prison when he is sentenced.
Perry was found dead by his assistant on October 28 2023, with the medical examiner later ruling that ketamine was the primary cause of death. The actor had been using the drug through his regular doctor in a legal but off-label treatment for depression that has become increasingly common.
Perry began seeking more ketamine than his doctor would give him. About a month before the actor’s death, he found Plasencia, who in turn asked Chavez to obtain the drug for him.
“I wonder how much this moron will pay,” Plasencia texted Chavez. The two met up the same day in Costa Mesa, halfway between Los Angeles and San Diego, and exchanged at least four vials of ketamine.
After selling the drugs to Perry for $4,500, Plasencia asked Chavez if he could keep supplying them so they could become Perry’s “go-to.”
Perry struggled with addiction for years, dating back to his time on Friends, when he became one of the biggest stars of his generation as Chandler Bing.
He starred alongside Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer for 10 seasons from 1994 to 2004 on NBC’s megahit sitcom.
