They called her “the queen of ketamine.”
According to authorities, Jasveen Sangha sold ketamine (also known as “Dr. Pepper”) in unmarked clear glass bottles and promoted it in Signal messages as being of high quality. She allegedly called her source a “master chef” and a “scientist.”
“She only cares[s] “With high-profile celebrities,” someone in his network allegedly texted a potential buyer. “If it wasn’t something great, I would lose their business.”
One of Sangha's most famous clients, federal prosecutors said Thursday, was Matthew Perry. Authorities say she sold about 50 vials of the drug to the actor for $11,000, including the batch that caused his death on Oct. 28 at age 54.
U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada said an investigation had uncovered “a vast underground criminal network” responsible for distributing large quantities of ketamine to Perry and others. He announced charges against five people, including Sangha, 41, and two doctors, in connection with Perry’s death.
They face a host of charges, including drug distribution resulting in death, according to an indictment made public Thursday.
Ketamine, a legal drug commonly used as an anesthetic, has gained popularity in recent years as a clinical treatment for depression and as a recreational drug. But Perry's death and the arrests that followed have raised questions about whether a crackdown on the drug is on the horizon.
“I think what we've seen is that this is not the beginning, but the continuation of a control effort against synthetic drugs of all kinds,” Estrada said.
Estrada referred to the opioid fentanyl, which has fueled an epidemic of overdoses, and said authorities are “on a campaign to address this and send a message that if you sell drugs that result in the death of another person, the consequences will be severe.”
Across the country, ketamine use has boomed, something medical experts say is being fueled by clinics and online services that offer intravenous treatments and prescriptions for home use (such as pills and nasal sprays) for ailments such as depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and substance use disorder.
Carol Gilson, a licensed psychotherapist and clinical social work supervisor based in Texas, has facilitated more than 3,000 ketamine-assisted therapy sessions.
“If you look at the reports of people dying with ketamine in their system, there is usually an underlying health issue and other things are the cause of death,” he said. “I think we are seeing ketamine being demonized right now.”
Perry, who was found dead in a hot tub at his Los Angeles home, suffered from diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which can cause airflow blockages and breathing problems. He reportedly quit smoking just two weeks before his death and at one point was smoking two packs of cigarettes a day.
Other factors contributing to his death, according to the medical examiner, included drowning, coronary artery disease and the effects of buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid addiction.
Gilson said he has personally witnessed hundreds of people experience changes in their mental health after taking ketamine in a therapeutic setting.
Bad actors like those who sold Perry the ketamine he took at home without supervision make it harder to spread the word about its therapeutic benefits, Gilson said.
“Ketamine is a valuable drug and my biggest fear is that it is in jeopardy because of people like this,” he said. “There are people here with medical licenses who are expected to uphold a code of ethics and they don’t. That’s the problem here. Ketamine is not the bad guy.”
DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said Perry sought treatment for depression and anxiety and went to a local clinic “where he became addicted to intravenous ketamine.”
“When doctors at the clinic refused to increase his dosage, he turned to unscrupulous doctors who saw Perry as a way to make a quick buck,” Milgram said.
Authorities said Perry relied on a combination of medical professionals and street dealers, obtaining and using the drug with the help of his assistant.
When another accused drug dealer, Salvador Plasencia, also known as “Dr. P.,” learned in September 2023 that Perry was interested in obtaining ketamine, he contacted another doctor, Mark Chavez, to purchase the drug, according to the indictment.
“I wonder how much this moron will pay,” Plasencia, 42, allegedly wrote to Chavez. “We’ll find out.”
From September to October 2023, the doctors distributed about 20 vials of ketamine to Perry in exchange for $55,000 in cash, according to Estrada. They charged Perry $2,000 for a vial that cost Chavez $12, authorities said.
“Plasencia saw this as an opportunity to profit from Mr. Perry,” Estrada said. “As a physician, defendant Plasencia knew full well the danger of what he was doing.”
On one occasion, according to the indictment, Plasencia injected Perry with a large dose of ketamine that caused the actor to freeze and his blood pressure to spike significantly. Despite that, he left additional vials of the drug with Perry's personal assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, who is also charged.
“As Matthew Perry’s addiction to ketamine grew, he wanted more and he wanted it faster and cheaper,” Milgram said. “That’s how he ended up buying from street dealers.”
In October, Iwamasa contacted Eric Fleming, 54, to purchase ketamine.
When police searched Sangha's home, Estrada said, they found what amounted to “a drug-dealing emporium.” There were about 80 vials of ketamine, thousands of pills containing methamphetamine, cocaine and vials of Xanax and other illegally obtained prescription drugs, authorities said.
Prosecutors say Sangha knew about the dangers of ketamine since at least August 2019, when he allegedly sold the drug to Cody McLaury in the hours before his overdose death at age 33.
After a McLaury relative texted Sangha saying his ketamine had killed McLaury, Sangha allegedly Googled “can ketamine be included as a cause of death?”[?]Sangha also faces charges in connection with McLaury's death.
After Perry's death, Estrada said, those arrested tried to cover up what they had done.
Sangha allegedly told Fleming to delete all of his messages. Plasencia, according to Estrada, falsified medical records and notes to “try to make it look like what he was doing was legitimate.”
Records showed a medical treatment plan for Perry that stated he was being given a maximum dose of 60 milligrams over 24 hours. In fact, prosecutors said, Perry was injecting him with much higher doses.
Fleming and Chavez, 54, pleaded guilty this month to charges of illegally distributing drugs. Iwamasa, 59, also pleaded guilty and admitted to injecting Perry with ketamine without medical training, including giving the actor several injections on the day of his death, according to authorities. Chavez faces up to 10 years in prison, Iwamasa faces 15 years and Fleming faces 25 years.
Plasencia could be sentenced to up to 120 years in prison and Sangha to life imprisonment.
Plasencia and Sangha were scheduled to appear in court on Thursday and were not available for comment.
“By filing these extensive and serious charges, we are sending a clear message. If you engage in the sale of dangerous drugs, we will hold you accountable for the deaths you cause,” Estrada said.
Among the country's ketamine user community, news of Thursday's charges was greeted with concern but little surprise.
Ren, a 32-year-old surgical technician who requested anonymity to discuss her medical history and what she characterizes as substance abuse, said she takes thousands of milligrams of ketamine each month, all prescribed by a New York-based online supplier who ships the drug in pill form to her home in Salt Lake City.
She said she was surprised by how easy it was for her to get a prescription through the provider, which is one of several startups that have drawn scrutiny from the broader medical community because they distribute ketamine based on little more than brief online queries.
“I could have said anything. I just said I had anxiety and they said, ‘You’re accepted.’ Then they sent me ketamine in the mail,” Ren said. “I didn’t even talk to a doctor to get access to this for the first time. It was a clinic worker who didn’t even have a degree.”
She said she was not surprised by reports that people have been harmed after becoming addicted to ketamine provided by street dealers and unscrupulous online clinics like the one where she is a patient.
Ren said he believes some medical providers and distributors are more concerned about their bottom line than safety.
“They don’t care,” he said. “They want my money.”
Staff writers Hannah Fry, Nathan Solis and Richard Winton contributed reporting.
