"he take one and try it and I have more if he likes."
Jasveen Sangha was arrested and charged in connection with Matthew Perry’s death.
The Friends actor was found dead in a hot tub at his Los Angeles home in October 2023.
The Los Angeles Medical Examiner’s Office determined the cause of death to be “the acute effects of ketamine”.
It said drowning, coronary artery disease and the effects of buprenorphine, which is used to treat opioid use disorder, were contributing factors.
Sangha was charged in an 18-count superseding indictment in relation to distributing ketamine to Matthew Perry in the weeks before his death.
Sangha was allegedly known throughout North Hollywood as a dealer to celebrities.
Due to her activity, she was nicknamed the ‘Ketamine Queen’.
She is charged with conspiracy to distribute ketamine, maintaining a drug-involved premises, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute ketamine, and five counts of distribution of ketamine.
Just hours before her arrest in LA on August 15, 2024, Sangha was boasting about her new haircut and colour on social media.
Sangha shared her lavish lifestyle on Instagram, where she posted pictures from her holidays to Mexico and Japan.
She would often post pictures of herself wearing luxury jewellery and designer clothes.
Sangha, who has dual US and British citizenship, also hosted parties for her friends in Hollywood and stated that “family is everything”.
In February 2024, Sangha posted selfies while tanning in Playa del Carmen, Mexico.
She also boasted about her health and wellness journey – using IV drips after late-night partying and being a proponent of “sound healing”, which she called “absolutely uplifting and cleansing for the heart and soul”.
Just two weeks after Matthew Perry’s death, Sangha travelled to Tokyo where she enjoyed lychee martinis at the lavish Mandarin Oriental hotel.
Sangha is one of five people arrested and charged in connection with the actor’s death.
Texts between the defendants revealed that Sangha was known for “only deal[ing] with high-end and celebs” in her drug business.
She allegedly used her Hollywood home, referenced in the indictment as the ‘Sangha Stash House’, to store, package, and distribute narcotics, including ketamine and methamphetamine.
The indictment states that Sangha “knew that the unsupervised and improper use of ketamine can be deadly” and in 2019, she allegedly sold the drug to another customer Cody McLaury, who died of a drug overdose.
After one of McLaury’s relatives texted Sangha saying that her ketamine had killed him, Sangha Googled “can ketamine be listed as a cause of death[?]”
It is alleged that she was a key figure in Matthew Perry’s drug-induced death.
On October 11, 2023, Sangha allegedly used Signal to message Eric Fleming that her ketamine was “high quality” and offered a sample to Matthew, stating:
“It’s unmarked but it’s amazing – he take one and try it and I have more if he likes.”
According to the indictment, 25 vials of ketamine were bought from Sangha on October 24 to be given to the actor.
As “part of the transaction, defendant Sangha included ketamine lollipops as an ‘add on’ for his large ketamine order”.
When she found out he had died, Sangha allegedly called one of the alleged co-conspirators and told him to delete any digital evidence on their cell phones.
In March 2024, her home was raided and police found an “emporium” of narcotics and 1,978 grams of meth.
An affidavit describing the raid read:
“During the search, law enforcement seized significant quantities of illegal drugs, including approximately 1,978 grams of orange pills that field tested positive for methamphetamine, 79 bottles containing a clear liquid that field tested positive for ketamine, and various other suspect narcotics.”
A handgun was also seized along with the drugs.
Sangha was a “large volume drug dealer” previously identified by the DEA, LAPD homicide detectives and the US Postal Inspection Service.
Agents seized her phone, which had “conversations related to selling pressed methamphetamine pills and ketamine”.
In a text conversation, Sangha asked for a payment of “958,51” to her PayPal, and said:
“I think you’ll like these but remember they’re double strength.”
Doctors Salvador Plascencia and Mark Chavez, Matthew’s live-in assistant Kenneth Iwamasa and drug dealer Eric Fleming have also been charged.
Iwamasa has since admitted to “repeatedly injecting Perry with ketamine without medical training”, including performing multiple injections on the day he died.
If found guilty, Sangha could face a life sentence.
Former federal narcotics prosecutor Neama Rahmani said:
“Jasveen Sangha was the source of the ketamine that killed Perry and she could easily receive a potential life sentence over his death.
“There will be a lot of pressure on lower-level defendants and witnesses to flip on the doctor who provided the ketamine or anyone else who played a role in getting it to Perry unlawfully.
“Some doctors believe ketamine infusions can treat anxiety and depression, but it’s one of the most abused party drugs.
“Perry should not have been using ketamine in a hot tub outside of a therapeutic setting.
“This is a very high-profile case and this is going to send a message to doctors as well as dealers who are profiting from distributing ketamine.”
US Attorney Martin Estrada said of Sangha and Plasencia:
“These defendants cared more about profiting off of Mr Perry than caring for his well-being.
“Drug dealers selling dangerous substances are gambling with other people’s lives over greed.
“This case, along with our many other prosecutions of drug dealers who cause death, send a clear message that we will hold drug dealers accountable for the deaths they cause.”
Sangha pleaded not guilty in a Los Angeles federal court and was jailed without bond. She is set to stand trial on October 8, 2024.
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