Overview
- Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett on Wednesday sentenced Kenneth Iwamasa to 41 months in federal prison, ordered a $10,000 fine and two years of supervised release, completing the multi‑defendant prosecution.
- Iwamasa pleaded guilty in August 2024 to conspiracy to distribute ketamine causing death, admitted to injecting Perry multiple times and found the actor unresponsive in the Pacific Palisades hot tub on Oct. 28, 2023.
- Investigators say Iwamasa obtained off‑book ketamine from Dr. Salvador Plasencia and from intermediary Erik Fleming, who in turn sourced the drug from dealer Jasveen Sangha.
- Co-defendants received varied punishments that reflected their roles and cooperation: Sangha was sentenced to 15 years, Plasencia to about 30 months, Fleming to two years and Dr. Mark Chavez to home confinement and community service.
- The Los Angeles medical examiner ruled ketamine the primary cause of death with drowning listed as a contributing factor, and the case has raised scrutiny of off‑label ketamine use, clinical oversight and the harms of nonmedical administration.