Erik Fleming Sentenced for Ketamine Distribution in Matthew Perry Overdose Case

Erik Fleming is set to be sentenced on Wednesday, May 14, 2026, for his role in supplying ketamine that killed "Friends" actor Matthew Perry. Fleming pleaded guilty in August 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine and one count of distribution of ketamine resulting in death. He faces up to 25 years in prison.

Federal prosecutors argued in a memorandum that Erik Fleming should receive 30 months in prison, citing 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 Jasveen Sangha and the actor's live-in personal assistant despite knowing the risks and dangers.

Prosecutors stated Fleming knew about Perry's history of addiction yet chose to sell him drugs contained in clear, unmarked vials of unknown concentrations.

He marked up the price of ketamine vials from $160 to $220. In October 2023, Jasveen Sangha and Erik Fleming sold Matthew Perry 51 vials of ketamine that were provided to Kenneth Iwamasa. On October 28, 2023, Kenneth Iwamasa injected Matthew Perry with at least three shots of ketamine supplied by Jasveen Sangha, which caused Perry's death.

Defense attorneys Robert Dugdale and Jeffrey Chemerinsky requested that Erik Fleming be sentenced to three months in prison and nine months in a residential drug treatment facility. They 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.

The defense 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. Fleming's attorneys maintained there are multiple mitigating factors, including his extraordinary cooperation which helped lead to the immediate apprehension of Sangha. Since pleading guilty, Erik Fleming has opened a sober living home.

"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.

@ABC reported that prosecutors agreed 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. Jasveen Sangha was sentenced to 15 years in prison last month.

She pleaded guilty 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.

Jasveen Sangha ran a high-volume drug trafficking business out of her residence in North Hollywood and sold ketamine that contributed to the overdose deaths of Matthew Perry and Cody McLaury. Five people were charged and convicted in the conspiracy to illegally distribute ketamine to Matthew Perry.

In addition to Fleming and Sangha, they include Kenneth Iwamasa, Perry's live-in personal assistant, and two doctors, Mark Chavez and Salvador Plasencia.

He is scheduled to be sentenced on May 27. Mark Chavez pleaded guilty in October 2024 to one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine.

He was sentenced to eight months of home confinement in December 2025. Chavez once ran a ketamine clinic. Salvador Plasencia pleaded guilty in July 2025 to four counts of distribution of ketamine.

Plasencia briefly treated Matthew Perry before the actor's death. Erik Fleming is a licensed drug addiction counselor who struggled with addiction himself.