Matthew Perry’s personal assistant, who played a central role in the “Friends” star’s addiction to ketamine and injecting him with a fatal dose of the drug, was sentenced Wednesday to three years and five months in prison.Judge Sherilyn Pace Garnett sentenced 60-year-old Kenneth Iwamasa in federal court in Los Angeles. He was also sentenced to two years in prison and a fine of US$10,000.It was the fifth and final ruling in the two-and-a-half-year inquest and trial that followed Perry’s death at the age of 54 on 28 October 2023.
There is no evidence that Kenneth Iwama acted with malicious intent
“I was familiar with his struggle with addiction,” Garnett said before handing down the sentence.
“Your behavior was reckless, not only on the day of his death but in the days leading up to his death.”The ruling was exactly what prosecutors sought, although Garnett disagreed on some details. It found that Iwamasa did not abuse his position of trust, which could have resulted in further prison time.She also told Iwamasa: “There is no conclusive evidence that you acted with malicious intent, although some may disagree with that.”Iwamasa was by Perry’s side during the last days of his life, serving as the actor’s assistant, drug messenger, and de facto doctor.
He was the last person to see Perry alive, and he was the one who found him dead in his jacuzzi.
Kenneth Iwamasa apologizes to Matthew Perry’s family
Iwamasa took the stand before the sentencing and took the unusual step of looking directly at Perry’s family and friends as he spoke into the microphone.“I’m so sorry, so sorry, and my condolences to you,” he said. “I am very sorry that I did these illegal actions that I will regret forever. I will take that to my grave.”Iwamasa was wearing a charcoal gray suit, his long white hair slicked back. He had no clear reaction to the ruling. His father and brother sat in the audience with other supporters.
Kenneth Iwamasa was the first to reach the plea deal
Iwamasa was the first person to reach a plea deal with prosecutors, pleading guilty in August 2024 to a charge of conspiracy to distribute ketamine resulting in death, and becoming their most important witness.Iwamasa’s lawyer, Alan Eisner, asked for six months in prison plus six months of home detention, stressing that he had always acted at the direction of a superior who had far more power than he had.“His loyalty to Mr. Perry was of the utmost importance,” Eisner told the judge. “He worshiped Mr. Perry, looked up to Mr. Perry. All he did was please and accommodate Mr. Perry.”When Eisner said Iwamasa would not have been able to act differently than he did, the judge interrupted and said: “Unwilling. Unable. He could have said no.”
Matthew Perry’s parents blame Kenneth Iwamasa for the actor’s death
Perry’s mother and sisters explained in letters to the judge that there was no one they blamed more for his death than Iwamasa — a longtime friend who they thought would help the actor maintain sobriety but instead indulged the worst impulses of a lifelong addict.Perry’s stepfather, longtime “Dateline” journalist Keith Morrison, spoke on behalf of his loved ones at the sentencing hearing.“We really felt like he was part of the family,” Morrison said. “We trusted him implicitly.”Morrison acknowledged the power imbalance, but said Iwamasa still had a choice.“I did the injection. You could have made the phone call,” he said. “But you didn’t, because you had a great life.” He added: “You were controlling one of the most famous people in the world.”
Kenneth Iwamasa used Matthew Perry’s addiction to his advantage
Lisa Ferguson, Perry’s manager for most of his career and now the custodian of his estate, painted an even bleaker picture, saying that Iwamasa deliberately expelled everyone around Perry, including his sober-living companions and medical personnel, to consolidate his power and influence. She angrily said he used Perry’s addiction to his own advantage.“You are the monster who killed him,” she said. She said he had not shown “an ounce of guilt or remorse” since Perry’s death, and that he should “rot in prison”.“Matthew deserves to live,” she said. “It wasn’t.”Iwamasa looked directly at Morrison and Ferguson throughout their remarks from his nearby seat.
About Kenneth Iwamasa’s work profile
Perry had hired Iwamasa in 2022, paying him $150,000 a year to live in his Los Angeles home and work as his assistant.The actor was legally taking the surgical anesthetic ketamine to treat depression, an increasingly common off-label use. But he wanted more than what his doctor would give him.According to Iwamasa’s plea agreement, he purchased ketamine informally from another doctor, Salvador Plascencia, who taught him how to inject it. Plasencia was sentenced to two and a half years in prison in July.Iwamasa also began purchasing ketamine from an acquaintance of Perry’s, Eric Fleming, who was obtaining it from a street dealer. Fleming was sentenced to two years in prison two weeks ago.
Inquest into the death of Matthew Perry
Dealer Jasveen Sangha, nicknamed the “Ketamine Queen,” was sentenced to 15 years in prison on April 8.The criminal investigation began shortly after Iwamasa returned from running errands to find Perry dead.The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner found that ketamine was the primary cause of death. Drowning was a secondary cause.Initially, Iwamasa lied to police, crossed out ketamine from the list of medications Perry was using, and said nothing about his injections. But after investigators issued a search warrant in January 2024, he began revealing his identity.Perry became one of the biggest stars of his generation alongside Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and Lisa Kudrow on Friends, the hit NBC sitcom that ran from 1994 to 2004.
