Doctor who helped supply Matthew Perry with ketamine pleads guilty to drug charge

A San Diego doctor charged in connection with Matthew Perry’s fatal overdose pleaded guilty Wednesday to conspiring to distribute the surgical anesthetic ketamine.

Dr. Mark Chavez, 54, entered the plea to the felony in federal court in Los Angeles, becoming the third person to admit guilt in the aftermath of the “Friends” star’s death last year.

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 “ketamine queen” of Los Angeles.

Dr. Mark Chavez, pictured above, pleaded guilty to charges in connection to late actor Matthew Perry’s death on Wednesday. AFP via Getty Images The San Diego doctor admitted he conspired to distribute ketamine to the “Friends” star. AFP via Getty Images

Chavez is free on bond until the sentencing. He has turned over his passport and agreed to surrender his medical license, among other conditions.

His lawyer Matthew Binninger said after Chavez’s first court appearance on Aug. 30 that he is “incredibly remorseful” and is “trying to do everything in his power to right the wrong that happened here.”

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.

Ketamine was Perry’s primary cause of death in October 2023. GC Images Aside from Chavez, seen here on Wednesday, two others have also admitted to playing a role in the actor’s death. AFP via Getty Images

The three are helping prosecutors as they go after their main targets: Dr. Salvador Plasencia, charged with illegally selling ketamine to Perry in the month before his death, and Jasveen Sangha, alleged to be a dealer who sold the actor the lethal dose.

Both have pleaded not guilty and are awaiting trial.

Chavez admitted in his plea agreement that he obtained ketamine from his former clinic and from a wholesale distributor where he submitted a fraudulent prescription.

Chavez, seen walking in Los Angeles, is free on bond. REUTERS According to Chavez’s lawyer, the physician is “incredibly remorseful.” ©NBC/Courtesy Everett Collection

Under the law, he could get up to 10 years in prison when he’s sentenced on April 2, but is likely to be sentenced to far less because of the plea and his cooperation with prosecutors.

Perry was found dead by his assistant on Oct. 28, 2023. The medical examiner ruled 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.

Perry was found dead by his assistant last year. matthewperry4/Instagram The “Fools Rush In” star had been using ketamine regularly. Youtube

About a month before the actor’s death, he found Plasencia, who in turn allegedly asked Chavez to obtain the drug for him.

“I wonder how much this moron will pay,” Plasencia texted Chavez, according to court filings from prosecutors.

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, the filings said.

After selling the drugs to Perry for $4,500, Plasencia allegedly asked Chavez if he could keep supplying them so they could become Perry’s “go-to,” prosecutors said.

He used the substance both legally and illegally. ABC News Perry is best known for his time on the sitcom “Friends.” NBCUniversal via Getty Images

U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said in announcing the charges Aug. 15 that “the doctors preyed on Perry’s history of addiction in the final months of his life last year to provide him with ketamine in amounts they knew were dangerous.”

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.