Man sentenced to 2 years in prison over Matthew Perry's ketamine overdose death
A man who helped supply Matthew Perry with the doses of ketamine that killed the "Friends" actor was sentenced on Wednesday to two years in prison.
Erik Fleming, a licensed drug addiction counselor, admitted in a plea agreement to working with another dealer to provide Perry with dozens of vials of ketamine, including the dose that led to the actor's fatal overdose in October 2023 at the age of 54.
Fleming is one of five people charged and convicted in what prosecutors called a conspiracy to illegally distribute ketamine to Perry. He pleaded guilty in August 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death.
He faced up to 25 years in prison, prosecutors said.
The sentence also includes three years of supervised release.
"I am regretfully sorry for the pain and anguish I have caused the family. It’s what hurts me the most," Fleming told reporters upon leaving the courthouse.
He said he deserved a consequence, "and I got a consequence."
"My chest and heart hurt every day for the pain that I've caused not only his family, but the millions of people who adored him," Fleming said.
Federal prosecutors argued in a memorandum filed ahead of sentencing that Fleming should receive 30 months in prison due to his "profit-seeking behavior and reckless distribution of dubiously manufactured drugs."
They said that after learning through a friend that Perry was seeking illicit ketamine, Fleming brokered multiple transactions between the other dealer, Jasveen Sangha, and the actor's live-in personal assistant, "despite knowing the risk and dangers of selling the drugs."
They said Fleming knew about Perry's history of addiction and still chose to sell him drugs, which, unlike medical-grade ketamine, were contained in clear, unmarked vials of unknown concentrations. They said he also marked up the price of the vials Sangha was selling from $160 to $220.
They said Fleming struggled with addiction himself and was "well aware of the warning signs of drug seeking behavior," but that he "nonetheless elected to insert himself into Mr. Perry's addiction story to profit from it."
"Although defendant's drug trafficking appear[s] to be limited to the drug sales in October 2023, his criminal conduct nonetheless caused significant harm, including the loss of Mr. Perry's life," prosecutors stated.
Defense attorneys, meanwhile, requested that Fleming be sentenced to three months in prison and nine months in a residential drug treatment facility "where he can continue the hard work he has put into maintaining his sobriety."
His attorneys, Robert Dugdale and Jeffrey Chemerinsky, said Fleming "relapsed into heavy drug use" following the death of his stepmother in September 2023 and was "most vulnerable to engage in uncharacteristically reckless conduct." They argued that he only brokered three transactions "involving very small quantities" of ketamine to a single customer in exchange for less than $2,000 for "logistical fees."
"Tragically, this brief diversion Mr. Fleming took from his otherwise law-abiding life led to a calamity Mr. Fleming never intended and foolishly did not foresee as possible," the attorneys stated in a sentencing memorandum.
"Mr. Fleming is appearing at his sentencing fully acknowledging the role he played in this tragedy and is as remorseful as one could be for the harm he has caused those close to Mr. Perry," they continued.
Fleming's attorneys maintained there are multiple mitigating factors, including his "extraordinary cooperation," which they said helped lead to the "immediate apprehension" of Sangha. Since pleading guilty, he has also "worked tirelessly to maintain his sobriety" and opened a sober living home, they said.
Prosecutors agreed that Fleming warranted leniency for accepting responsibility and cooperating with the government's investigation, "including information that furthered the prosecution of a more culpable defendant," Sangha.
Sangha, the so-called "Ketamine Queen," was sentenced to 15 years in prison last month. She pleaded guilty last year to one count of maintaining a drug-involved premises, three counts of distribution of ketamine, and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death or serious bodily injury.
Prosecutors said she ran a "high-volume drug trafficking business" out of her residence in North Hollywood and continued to sell "dangerous drugs" even after learning she had sold ketamine that contributed to the overdose deaths of two men: Perry and, years earlier, Los Angeles resident Cody McLaury.
In addition to Fleming and Sangha, three other people were charged and pleaded guilty in connection with Perry's death: Kenneth Iwamasa, Perry's live-in personal assistant; and two doctors, Mark Chavez and Salvador Plasencia.
Prosecutors said Sangha worked with Fleming to distribute ketamine to Perry, and that in October 2023, they sold the actor 51 vials of ketamine that were provided to Iwamasa.
"Leading up to Perry's death, Iwamasa repeatedly injected Perry with the ketamine that Sangha supplied to Fleming," the DOJ said in a press release last year. "Specifically, on October 28, 2023, Iwamasa injected Perry with at least three shots of Sangha's ketamine, which caused Perry's death."
Iwamasa pleaded guilty in August 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine, causing death, and is scheduled to be sentenced on May 27.
Chavez and Plasencia have already been sentenced for their roles in what prosecutors called a conspiracy to illegally distribute ketamine to Perry.
Chavez, who once ran a ketamine clinic, pleaded guilty in October 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and was sentenced to eight months of home confinement in December 2025.
Plasencia, who briefly treated Perry before the actor's death, pleaded guilty in July 2025 to four counts of distribution of ketamine and was sentenced to 30 months in prison in December 2025.
