Over the past few days, news has been building up about Matthew Perry’s death last October.
Every little thing is more heartbreaking than before.
Earlier this week, we learned that the actor’s death led to multiple arrests because he obtained ketamine without a prescription from doctors and drug dealers.
Then we learned that Perry’s assistant, Kenneth Rock, was administering the injection to the beloved actor on the day of his death.
Now, according to new court documents obtained by NBC News and published on August 16, Perry reportedly asked his assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, for help taking the drug three times that day.
Speaking of the drug, the “Friends” actor asked Yan Zheng to “inject me with a big pill.”
It is understood these were the last words Perry said to anyone before he overdosed.
Perry was found dead in a hot tub at his Los Angeles home on October 28… His cause of death was later determined to be “the acute effects of ketamine” due to a drowning accident.
However, this wasn’t the first time Perry experienced the negative effects of dissociative anesthesia.
Prosecutors said in the recently unsealed documents that on October 12, Perry suffered an “adverse medical reaction” from an injection of ketamine at his home.
Lawyers now say Dr. Salvador Plasencia, who has been arrested, gave the 54-year-old actor a “large dose” at the request of Iwamasa, who is also charged in the case. “Controlled substances, the actor had previously injected a “large dose” of a controlled substance. Receive a ketamine infusion in your doctor’s office.
The latter procedure is required by law; the former is not.
The Justice Department said the ketamine in the home caused Perry’s systolic blood pressure to “significantly increase” and left him “frozen” to the point of being “unable to speak or move.”
And more:
Although the above three injections led to Perry’s death in October, Iwamasa claimed that he administered a total of 27 injections to Perry in the last five days of his life.
(For the record, Iwamasa had no medical training and followed instructions laid out by Plasencia.)
Yanzheng, who discovered Perry’s body, has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death, according to authorities.
In connection with this, Plasencia faces one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, seven counts of distributing ketamine, and two counts of tampering and falsifying documents or records related to a federal investigation.
He has yet to enter a public plea.
Perry struggled with substance abuse for years, but those close to the actor believed he was clean at the time of his death.
The star detailed his battle in his memoir Friends, Lovers, and Big Scary Events: A Memoir, in which Perry focused much of his energy on using his own experiences to help others stay clean and sober.
In a statement following the comedian’s death, Warner Bros. wrote:
“We are saddened by the passing of our dear friend Matthew Perry. Matthew was an incredibly talented actor and an indelible part of the Warner Bros. Television family.
“The impact of his comedic genius has spread across the world and his legacy will always live in the hearts of many.
“This is a heartbreaking day and we send our love to his family, his loved ones and all of his loyal fans.”
