One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
‘Ketamine Queen’ sentenced to 15 years in prison for role in Matthew Perry’s drug overdose
Actor Matthew Perry died in October 2023 in his Los Angeles home.
(
Frederick M. Brown
/
Getty Images
)
Topline:
Jasveen Sangha, a North Hollywood woman known as the “Ketamine Queen,” was sentenced to 15 years in prison for her role in selling actor Matthew Perry the ketamine that killed him in 2023.
What we know: Sangha pleaded guilty last September to five counts, including distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury. Sangha’s lawyers did not respond to LAist’s request for comment.
Background: Perry died in October 2023 in his Los Angeles home. The L.A. County medical examiner determined the cause was “acute effects of ketamine.” According to the plea agreement, Sangha worked with alleged drug dealer Erik Fleming to distribute ketamine to Perry.
On October 28, 2023, Perry's personal assistant injected the actor with at least three shots of ketamine provided by Sangha. Those shots caused Perry's death.
What prosecutors say: In a sentencing memorandum, prosecutors said Sangha "operated a high-volume drug trafficking business" out of her North Hollywood home.
“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," the memo stated.
Sponsored message
Who else has been sentenced? Sangha is the third defendant sentenced in Perry’s overdose death. For their roles in Perry’s death, San Diego physician Mark Chavez was sentenced to eight months of house arrest, along with community service, and Santa Monica-based doctor Salvador Plasencia was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison.
What’s next? Fleming and Perry's personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, are scheduled for sentencing later this month.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
