Ketamine is a powerful anesthetic and is used to treat depression, anxiety, and pain.
People close to Perry, who starred as one of the main characters on the NBC TV show “Friends,” told the coroner's inquest after his death that he had been receiving ketamine infusion therapy.
But his last session took place more than a week before he died. The medical examiner said the ketamine in Perry's system did not come from infusion therapy because the drug has a short half-life.
According to the medical examiner, the levels of ketamine in his body were equivalent to those administered during general anesthesia.
An indictment filed in federal court details an elaborate drug-buying scheme that prosecutors allege led to Perry's death.
Prosecutors said Perry's secretary, Kenneth Iwamasa, worked with two doctors to provide Perry with $50,000 (£38,000) worth of ketamine in the weeks before his death.
Officials alleged that those involved in the scheme were trying to profit from Perry’s well-known drug abuse problems. One doctor, Salvador Plasencia, reportedly wrote in a text message, “I wonder how much this idiot is going to pay.”
According to the indictment, Dr. Placencia, 42, provided Perry with ketamine “outside the normal scope of his professional practice and for no legitimate medical purpose.”
According to the indictment, he also taught Iwamasa how to inject Perry with ketamine without proper safety procedures or supervision.
Prosecutors alleged that Iwamasa administered ketamine to Perry at least 27 times in the four days before her death.
Prosecutors said Perry “froze” after taking a large dose of ketamine earlier that month, even after Placencia advised him not to take similar doses in the future. The doctor left several bottles of the drug with the actor and his assistant after the incident, according to the indictment.
Another person charged in connection with the case is Jasvin Sanga, the so-called “Ketamine Queen,” who prosecutors allege supplied the drug to Placencia with the help of two other co-defendants, Eric Fleming and Dr. Chavez.
