Federal investigators are trying to determine how Matthew Perry obtained the ketamine that killed him, it has emerged.
Perry, 54, died in October last year from the acute effects of the anesthetic ketamine.
The Friends actor was declared dead after he was found face down and unconscious in the jacuzzi attached to the pool at his Los Angeles home.
His death was publicly considered a closed case, with the medical examiner ruling it an accident, but law enforcement sources have now revealed that authorities are investigating how he obtained ketamine and from whom.
Local police and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents have interviewed several “key Hollywood figures” who are known drug users, an insider said TMZ.
The interviewees are not “necessarily the actual source of ketamine,” the news outlet reported, but authorities believe they may have “information leading to the source.”
Federal investigators are trying to determine how Matthew Perry obtained the ketamine that killed him, it has emerged. The actor, 54, died on October 28 last year from the acute effects of the anesthetic ketamine. He is pictured on October 22, 2023, the last time he was seen in public
Perry was declared dead after he was found face down and unconscious in the jacuzzi attached to the pool at his Los Angeles home. He is pictured in the hot tub in a photo he shared on his Instagram page
Perry is best known for his role of Chandler Bing on the hit ’90s TV sitcom Friends. He is pictured with fellow castmates Courtney Cox, Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Matt LeBlanc and Lisa Kudrow
The Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner ruled that Perry died of an accidental ketamine overdose on October 28, 2023.
He also drowned in “the heated end of his swimming pool,” the autopsy report said, but that this was a secondary factor in his death.
The investigator’s report does not specify how or when Perry took the fatal dose of ketamine. But it was determined that trace amounts were found in his stomach and that prescription drugs and loose pills were present at his home.
Sources close to Perry told investigators that at the time of his death he was undergoing ketamine infusion therapy, an experimental treatment used to treat depression and anxiety.
But his most recent known infusion occurred more than a week before his overdose, meaning that dose would no longer have been in his system.
According to the investigator’s report, the levels of ketamine in Perry’s blood were similar to higher levels used as a general anesthetic in surgeries, and would cause overstimulation of the heart and breathing problems.
This could have caused Perry to become unconscious, with drowning becoming a contributing cause of death.
Perry’s coronary artery disease and his use of buprenorphine to treat severe pain may have made him more vulnerable to the effects of ketamine, the report said.
The autopsy report showed there was no alcohol in his system. There were also no traces of other drugs such as cocaine, heroin or fentanyl.
Local police and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents have interviewed several “key Hollywood figures” who are known drug users in an effort to find out who gave Perry ketamine, an insider told TMZ. The interviewees are not “necessarily the actual source of ketamine,” but authorities believe they may have “information leading to the source.” Pictured: Perry as Chandler Bing in Friends
The Batman logo at the bottom of his pool is seen here in an aerial shot in daylight. Perry’s body was found in the hot tub next to the pool, at the bottom of this photo
Police officers cordoned off the street leading to Perry’s home, where he was found dead on October 28
Perry, best known for his role as Chandler Bing in the hit ’90s TV sitcom Friends, had struggled with addiction to drugs, including ketamine, and related serious health problems for decades, but had reportedly been clean for 19 months before he died.
Perry wrote in his memoir how he used ketamine daily during his battles with addiction. He said the drug eased his pain and helped with depression.
“Has my name written all over it – they might as well have called it ‘Matty,’” he wrote of ketamine. “Taking K is like getting hit in the head with a giant jolly shovel. But the hangover was intense and heavier than the shovel,” Perry explained.
He visited several rehabilitation clinics to combat addiction to painkillers and alcohol. In 2018, he suffered a ruptured colon, related to drug use, and underwent multiple surgeries.
In his memoir Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, published in 2022, Perry described going through detox dozens of times. He dedicated the book to “all the patients out there,” writing in the prologue, “I should be dead.”
“I have been mostly sober since 2001,” he wrote, “except for about 60 to 70 minor accidents over the years.”
Perry (pictured in 2015) struggled with addiction to drugs, including ketamine, and related serious health problems for decades, but was reportedly clean for 19 months before his death
However, a close friend of the star – who asked not to be named – told DailyMail.com last year that Perry was ‘never’ clean.
“He lied to everyone about his cleanliness. He never was. It’s very sad. You know, the biggest lie he told was probably to himself,” the insider said.
“He could be quite manipulative when it came to his struggles with using, but it was such a struggle, such a battle, and he fought every day until the end.”
Ketamine is used illegally as a recreational drug due to its narcotic and hallucinogenic effects. The drug can also be used by doctors as an anesthetic, and researchers are investigating its use as a mental health treatment.