A San Diego doctor is expected to formally plead guilty Wednesday in connection with the death of “Friends” star Matthew Perry.
During his first court appearance last month, 54-year-old Mark Chavez did not enter a plea before the presiding judge, but agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine. The charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 10 years.
As part of the plea deal, Chavez admitted to taking prescription drugs from his former employer, based in San Diego ketamine infusion clinic. He allegedly conspired with another doctor, Salvador Plasencia, to supply Perry with ketamine.
“Ketamine is a controlled substance. It has some legitimate uses, but it is also used illegally,” U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Martin Estrada said as he announced the charges in Perry’s death.
According to the Drug Enforcement Agency, ketamine is a Schedule III drug that shares the same classification as Tylenol with codeine, anabolic steroids and testosterone.
Authorities found Perry in a hot tub at his Los Angeles home. The actor’s autopsy report noted his own cause of death as ‘acute effects of ketamine’, with contributing factors including ‘drowning, coronary artery disease and buprenorphine effects’. According to the National Institutes of Health, Buprenorphine is a synthetic opioid commonly used to treat pain and opioid use disorders.
“These defendants took advantage of Mr. Perry’s substance abuse problems to enrich themselves,” Estrada said.
After learning of Perry’s death, Chavez allegedly called Plasencia to ask if he was concerned that the ketamine they distributed to Perry was the cause of his death.
“[Chavez is] incredibly remorseful for what happened – not just because it happened to Matthew Perry, but because it happened to a patient,” said attorney Matthew Binninger. “He’s trying to do everything he can to right the wrongs that happened here.”
After posting $50,000 bail, a federal judge ordered Chavez to surrender his medical license and barred him from practicing medicine. Records from the Medical Board of California show the La Jolla doctor’s license has been suspended and he is not allowed to practice.
Chavez and Plascencia are two of them five people are facing federal charges in Perry’s death.
Estrada alleged that the group distributed “large quantities” of ketamine to Perry and others as part of a “broad underground criminal network.”
“They knew what they were doing was wrong,” he said. “They knew what they were doing put Mr. Perry in great danger, but they did it anyway. Ultimately, these defendants were more interested in taking advantage of Mr. Perry than caring for his well-being.”
