Jasveen Sangha, a 41-year-old resident of California, charged with supplying ketamine that led to the death of Friends star Matthew Perry last year, had maintained a lavish lifestyle and an active social life. Dubbed the “Ketamine Queen”, she called herself a “celebrity drug dealer” with “high-quality goods”.

Prosecutors allege that Sangha, who has dual British and American citizenship, was a key figure in a drug distribution network that supplied the powerful sedative to Perry and others.

Sangha frequently went to various places, including Mexico, Spain, Italy, Greece, Japan, France, Dubai and Antigua, and was seen driving around with a BMW, all while being “blithely indifferent to the fact that her ketamine” claimed people’s lives, The New York Post quoted prosecutors as saying.

ACTIVE AND GLITZY SOCIAL LIFE

Sangha maintained a huge number of followers on her Instagram and regularly posted pictures and videos of her exotic trips abroad.

According to her friend Carter, Sangha was able to easily access celebrities and ultra-high-end clients and attended awards ceremonies due to her work in marketing and event planning, The Sun reported.

She also owned several businesses, including a nail salon, which she opened in 2015, but was shut after two years.

Two weeks after Perry’s death, Sangha, in November 2023, captioned a post of herself sipping lychee martinis at Tokyo’s Mandarin Oriental Hotel, where suites cost nearly £1,500 a night.

In February this year, Sangha was seen enjoying herself by a swimming pool at a beachfront residence in Playa del Carmen, Mexico and posted selfies drinking cocktails, according to The Sun.

According to prosecutors, Sangha is accused of funding her glitzy lifestyle through drug dealing, which also includes renting her home in North Hollywood for “thousands of dollars per month” and driving a rented Range Rover which she exchanged with her BMW.

Sangha was believed to maintain a “carefree” attitude and enjoyed her social life before her arrest, according to her friends. She also claimed to have been self-employed as an “artist and singer” who did “art shows”, according to court papers.

“If anything, she became more social in the past few months,” a long-time friend of Sangha told The New York Post.

INVOLVEMENT IN DRUG DEALING

Sangha’s involvement in the drug trade dates back to at least 2019, when she allegedly sold ketamine to a man named Cody McLaury, who overdosed and died within hours of the transaction. After a family member of McLaury’s informed Sangha of the death, she searched online for “can ketamine be listed as a cause of death?”

The incident highlighted Sangha’s awareness of the dangers of ketamine, which she continued to distribute despite the risks.

In the case of Perry, Sangha allegedly provided the ketamine that ultimately caused his death. On October 11 last year, Sangha messaged an acquaintance, Eric Fleming, about her ketamine supply and offered a sample for Perry.

Fleming forwarded a screenshot of Sangha’s message to Perry’s live-in assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa, stating that Sangha only dealt with high-end clients and celebrities.

Iwamasa then purchased 25 vials of ketamine from Sangha on October 14 and another batch on October 23. Five days later, Perry was found dead in his bathtub at his home in Los Angeles and an initial probe suggested accidental drowning.

However, a December 2023 autopsy report revealed that Perry’s death was caused by the “acute effects of ketamine,” which, along with other factors, led him to lose consciousness and slip under the water in the hot tub. Additional factors in his death included drowning, coronary artery disease, and the impact of the opioid-addiction medication buprenorphine, which was also found in his system.

Iwamasa is accused of giving 27 ketamine shots to Perry during the last five days of his life, including three shots that resulted in his subsequent death, according to prosecutors.

Perry had publicly acknowledged decades of drug and alcohol abuse, including during the years he starred as Chandler Bing on the hit 1990s television sitcom “Friends.” He had been sober for 19 months with no known relapses before his death, according to interviews cited in his autopsy.

SANGHA, OTHERS CHARGED

Sangha was arrested on August 15 this year in connection with Perry’s accidental ketamine overdose. She was charged with nine counts, including conspiracy to distribute ketamine, maintaining drug-involved premises, possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and ketamine, and five counts of distribution of ketamine. If convicted, she could face life imprisonment.

During her court appearance on Friday, the 41-year-old pleaded not guilty to all charges. Despite this, the judge ordered her to be held without bail, considering her a flight risk. Her attorney criticised the “Ketamine Queen” moniker used by prosecutors, suggesting it was crafted to gain media attention.

The investigation into Perry’s death also led to the arrest of Dr Salvador Plasencia, a Santa Monica-based physician accused of being a key supplier of ketamine. Plasencia, known as “Dr P,” allegedly used encrypted messaging apps and coded language to facilitate drug deals. He pleaded not guilty to all charges and was released on a $100,000 bond, The New York Post reported.

Apart from Sangha and Dr Plasencia, Dr Mark Chavez, Iwamasa, Perry’s personal assistant and associate Erik Fleming have been charged in the actor’s death.

According to federal documents, Sangha was “obsessed” with her appearance, her friends said, and claimed she was getting regular Botox treatments and IV drips to promote her “natural wellness”.

“Although she also sold methamphetamine and other drugs like magic mushrooms, defendant’s specialty was ketamine, which she routinely sold, holding herself out as a celebrity drug dealer with high-quality goods,” the documents said.