Kenneth Iwamasa, Matthew Perry's longtime personal assistant, was sentenced to 41 months in federal prison for his role in the Friends star's death from a ketamine overdose in October 2023.
The sentencing marks a sobering conclusion to a case that exposed the enabler culture surrounding addiction in Hollywood. Iwamasa pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death, admitting he repeatedly injected Perry with the drug despite having no medical training.
According to court documents, Iwamasa administered at least 27 shots of ketamine to Perry in the five days leading up to his death, including multiple injections on the day he died. The assistant had been procuring the drug from two doctors and a dealer known as the "Ketamine Queen of Los Angeles."
What makes this case particularly disturbing isn't just the number of injections—it's the system that allowed it to happen. Perry was open about his decades-long battle with addiction, chronicling his struggles in his memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing. Yet those closest to him, including his own assistant, became suppliers rather than protectors.
The prosecution emphasized that Iwamasa knew Perry was spiraling. He watched the actor's tolerance build, saw him demand more and more ketamine, and continued to inject him anyway. On the day of Perry's death, Iwamasa gave him three injections, the last one just before leaving him alone in the jacuzzi where he would be found unresponsive.
Five people total have been charged in connection with Perry's death, including two doctors who are accused of exploiting the actor's addiction for profit. Text messages revealed one doctor asking, "I wonder how much this moron will pay" for ketamine.
