After drug-related death Ex-assistant of Matthew Perry must serve over three years in prison
Following the death of "Friends" actor Matthew Perry, his former assistant has been sentenced to several years in prison. What role did he play in the case?
27.05.2026, 22:37
28.05.2026, 06:21
dpa
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- The former assistant of the late "Friends" actor Matthew Perry has been sentenced to three years and five months in prison.
- He had admitted to administering at least 27 ketamine injections to the actor in the days before his death.
- This brings the total number of people convicted after Perry's death in 2023 to five.
Almost three years after the death of "Friends" actor Matthew Perry, his assistant at the time has been sentenced to three years and five months in prison. This was reported by the "New York Times" and other US media, citing a court decision in Los Angeles.
According to the ruling, Kenneth Iwamasa had admitted to giving the actor at least 27 ketamine injections in the days before his death. This included three doses on the day of his death. Iwamasa had pleaded guilty. A total of five people, including doctors, dealers and Iwamasa, the actor's assistant, were convicted after Perry's death in 2023.
Longest prison sentence for "ketamine queen"
In May, a 56-year-old man was sentenced to two years in prison in connection with the death. The man had pleaded guilty to providing Perry with more than 50 doses of ketamine in October 2023 in the weeks before his death. He was the middleman for a dealer known as the "ketamine queen", in whose house large quantities of various drugs, including methamphetamine and ecstasy, were found.
One of the doctors received two and a half years in prison last December, while his colleague was sentenced to eight months' house arrest. The longest sentence to date, 15 years in prison, was handed down to the "ketamine queen" in April. According to the public prosecutor's office, she supplied the dose that led to the actor's death, among other things.
Perry struggled with addiction
Perry was found dead in the hot tub of his Los Angeles home on October 28, 2023 at the age of 54. The actor had spoken publicly about his battle with addiction. According to reports, he had been undergoing ketamine treatment under medical supervision for depression and anxiety. He is also said to have obtained the drug on the black market.
Ketamine has been a proven anesthetic for decades. People with treatment-resistant depression can also be treated with ketamine under certain conditions. Some partygoers also use the drug as an illegal club drug.