Erik Fleming, the former film producer who pleaded guilty to distributing ketamine that resulted in Matthew Perry's 2023 death, has received a prison sentence in the high-profile case.
U.S. District Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett sentenced Fleming, who later became a licensed drug addiction counselor, to two years in prison during a hearing May 13.
In addition to his upcoming incarceration, Fleming was sentenced to three years of probation as part of the ruling. Garnett ordered Fleming, who'd been free on bond for about two years, to turn himself in for his prison sentence in 45 days, according to The Associated Press.
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"It's truly a nightmare I can't wake up from," an emotional Fleming told Garnett before receiving his sentence, AP reported. "I'm haunted by the mistakes I made."
USA TODAY has reached out to attorneys for Fleming and U.S. prosecutors for comment.
Fleming's sentencing comes a month after drug dealer Jasveen Sangha, also known as "the Ketamine Queen" of North Hollywood, was sentenced to 15 years in prison for her involvement in Perry's overdose death.
Perry, best known for his role as the wisecracking Chandler Bing on the NBC sitcom "Friends," was found dead in a jacuzzi at his Los Angeles home in October 2023, following a decades-long battle with substance abuse. The mysterious circumstances surrounding the 54-year-old's death sparked a criminal investigation that led to several arrests.
A December 2023 autopsy report revealed that Perry's death was an accident, with the cause being "the acute effects of ketamine." Contributing factors were drowning, coronary artery disease and the effects of buprenorphine.
In August 2024, nearly one year after Perry's death, Fleming pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute ketamine and distribution of ketamine resulting in death.
Prosecutors previously said that in October 2023, Sangha worked with Fleming − described as Perry's acquaintance − to sell 51 vials of ketamine to the actor's live-in assistant, Kenneth Iwamasa. Iwamasa then injected Perry with the short-acting anesthetic. Fleming and Iwamasa later reached plea deals with prosecutors.
All five defendants who faced charges over Perry's death have pleaded guilty: Fleming, Sangha, Iwamasa, Dr. Salvador Plasencia and Dr. Mark Chavez. Fleming is the fourth person to be sentenced in connection with the actor's case.
A former Hollywood moviemaker, Fleming directed the 1999 children’s family comedy "My Brother the Pig," starring Scarlett Johansson and Eva Mendes, as well as served as a director-producer on the road trip film "Tyrone," which featured rapper Coolio and "Entourage" star Kevin Connolly. He also produced Season 1 of the reality show "The Surreal Life" in 2003.
Contributing: Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY; Reuters
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Drug counselor in Matthew Perry death sentenced to 2 years in prison
