‘Ketamine Queen’ Gets 15 Years for Role in Matthew Perry’s Death

A San Fernando Valley woman, Jasveen Sangha, will spend 15 years in federal prison for selling ketamine that caused the death of Friends' star Matthew Perry on October 28, 2023.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California confirmed that Sangha was sentenced by District Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett on April 8.

Jasveen Sangha, 42, known as the “Ketamine Queen” of North Hollywood, pleaded guilty in September 2025 to one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine, and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury.

Sangha is a dual citizen of the United States and the United Kingdom, and has been in federal custody since August 2024.

According to court documents, Sangha distributed drugs to Perry’s acquaintance Erik Fleming, who then sold 51 vials of ketamine to the actor’s live-in personal assistant Kenneth Iwamasa.

Prosecutors alleged that Iwamasa injected Perry with at least three shots of Sangha’s ketamine, which caused the actor’s death.

“After learning from news reports of Perry’s death, Sangha called Fleming on the Signal app to discuss how to distance themselves from it,” a press release from the Central District of California said. “That day, Sangha updated the settings on the Signal apps to automatically delete her messages with Fleming. She further instructed Fleming to ‘Delete all our messages.’”

Two days after Perry’s death, Fleming reportedly left Sangha a voicemail on Signal and texted, “Please call… Got more info and want to bounce ideas off you. I’m 90% sure everyone is protected. I never dealt with (Perry). Only his Assistant. So the Assistant was the enabler. Also they are doing a 3 month tox screening… Does K stay in your system or is it immediately flushed out (?).”

Perry was found unresponsive in a jacuzzi at his home in Pacific Palisades, Los Angeles on October 28, 2023.

The County of Los Angeles Department of Medical Examiner (DME) determined the cause of death for the 54-year-old actor was the acute effects of ketamine. Contributing factors included drowning, coronary artery disease and the effects of buprenorphine, a medication to treat opioid use disorder.

For years, Sangha operated a high-volume drug trafficking business out of her North Hollywood residence, prosecutors argued.

“To cultivate her business, (Sangha) marketed herself as an exclusive dealer who catered to high-profile Hollywood clientele. While (Sangha) worked to expand and profit from her drug trafficking, she knew – and disregarded – the grave harm her conduct was causing,” they added.

Sangha reportedly used her North Hollywood residence to store, package, and distribute narcotics, including ketamine and methamphetamine, since June 2019.

Besides Sangha, Salvador Plasencia, 44, known as “Dr. P,” of Santa Monica, is serving 30 months in prison after pleading guilty in July 2025 to four counts of distributing ketamine to Perry. He surrendered his California medical license in September 2025.

Mark Chavez, 55, of San Diego, was sentenced to three years’ probation, including eight months of home detention, and 300 hours of community service after pleading guilty in October 2024 to conspiracy to distribute ketamine. He supplied the drug to Plasencia, who then provided it to Perry, and surrendered his medical license in November 2024.

Iwamasa and Fleming, who pleaded guilty in August 2024 to federal narcotics charges tied to Perry’s death, are awaiting sentencing.