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LOS ANGELES – The final sentencing in the long-running investigation into the drug-related death of actor Matthew Perry centers on his personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, who played a pivotal role in providing the ketamine that ultimately caused the “Friends” star’s fatal overdose.
Iwamasa, 60, is scheduled to be sentenced Wednesday in a Los Angeles federal courtroom before Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett, who has previously handed down sentences to four of his co-defendants over the past year.
He was the first among them to reach a plea agreement, admitting guilt in August 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine resulting in death. Wednesday marks his first court appearance since the case became public.
As a key witness for the prosecution, Iwamasa faces a recommended sentence of three years and five months in prison – a term reduced for his cooperation but still longer than that of nearly all others involved.
In court filings, Iwamasa’s defense attorneys described him as an employee caught in a complex and vulnerable relationship with Perry, saying he “could not ‘simply say no,’” a failure that had devastating consequences.
Perry’s family has expressed deep anger and disappointment toward Iwamasa, whom they regarded as a trusted friend charged with helping the actor maintain sobriety but who instead enabled his struggles with addiction.
“Matthew trusted Kenny. We trusted Kenny.
Kenny’s most important job – by far – was to be my son’s companion and guardian in his fight against addiction,” Perry’s mother, Suzanne Morrison, wrote in a letter to the judge. “We trusted a man without a conscience, and my son paid the price.”
Hired in 2022 and earning $150,000 annually, Iwamasa lived at Perry’s Los Angeles home and worked as his personal assistant. Perry had been prescribed ketamine legally for depression, but sought higher doses than his doctor approved.
According to Iwamasa’s plea deal, he acquired ketamine off the books from Dr. Salvador Plasencia, who instructed him on how to inject the drug.
Plasencia was sentenced to 2 ½ years in prison in July. Iwamasa also obtained ketamine from Perry acquaintance Erik Fleming, who sourced it from a street dealer and recently received a two-year sentence.
The dealer, Jasveen Sangha-nicknamed “The Ketamine Queen”-was sentenced to 15 years in prison earlier this month.
In the final days before Perry’s death on October 23, 2023, Iwamasa reportedly injected him six to eight times daily. On the day of the actor’s passing, Iwamasa administered a large dose of ketamine before leaving the residence; upon returning, he found Perry deceased in a Jacuzzi. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner ruled ketamine toxicity as the primary cause of death, with drowning as a secondary factor.
Initially, Iwamasa withheld critical information from law enforcement, failing to disclose the use of ketamine or his injections. However, following a January 2024 search warrant, he began cooperating fully with investigators.
Matthew Perry was a beloved figure in television, rising to fame alongside Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer, and Lisa Kudrow on NBC’s iconic sitcom “Friends,” which aired from 1994 to 2004.