Drug Dealer Gets Two Years In Matthew Perry's Death

LOS ANGELES, May 14 (Bernama-dpa) -- A 56-year-old man has been sentenced to two years in prison in connection with the death of "Friends" star Matthew Perry, the New York Times and other US media reported, citing a court ruling in Los Angeles on Wednesday, reported German Press Agency (dpa).

Prosecutors had sought a prison term of two and a half years, while the man's lawyers had hoped for a more lenient sentence of three months in prison and nine months in an addiction treatment facility.

The man, described as a TV director and an acquaintance of the deceased actor, pleaded guilty to obtaining more than 50 doses of ketamine for Perry in the weeks before his death in October 2023.

He acted as a middleman for a dealer known as the "ketamine queen" at whose home large quantities of various drugs were found, including methamphetamine and ecstasy.

In total, five people were arrested, including doctors, dealers and an assistant to the actor.

One of the doctors received a prison term of two and a half years last December, while his colleague was sentenced to eight months of house arrest.

The longest sentence so far of 15 years in prison was imposed in April on the "ketamine queen."

According to prosecutors, Jasveen Sangha, a 41-year-old British-American woman, supplied the dose that led to the actor's death, among other things.

The sentence for Perry's assistant at the time is to be announced at the end of May.

Perry was found dead in the hot tub at his home in Los Angeles on October 28, 2023, at the age of 54.

The actor had previously spoken publicly about his struggle with addiction.

-- BERNAMA-dpa