Five charged over actor's death, Matthew Perry

An American prosecutor said charges have been filed against five people over the death of the actor, Matthew. Perry, who died last year of overdoses with ketamine.

Among the accused are two doctors and the actor's assistant.

Prosecutor Martin Estrada announced the raising of charges on August 15th, saying doctors supplied Perry with large quantities of etamine and, even during an exchange of written messages, asked how much he would be willing to pay for the former Friends' star.

These defendants took advantage of Perry's addiction problem in order to enrich themselves. They know what they were doing was wrong”, Estrada said.

Perry died in October because of overdose with ketamine. He was injected with several doses from his personal assistant with this substance the day he died. The assistant was the person who found Perry dead later that day.

Two people, including a doctor who has been charged, have been arrested, Estrada said. Two defendants, including Perry's assistant, have only been convicted of the prosecution, while the third person has agreed to plead guilty.

The prosecutor said the accused had texted immediately after Perry's death referring to the ketamine as the cause of death. Estrada said they tried to hide their involvement in Perry's supply with ketamine, which is a powerful substance often used to treat chronic pain and depression.

In May, police in Los Angeles said they were working with the drug fight administration to investigate why the 54-year-old actor's body had large amounts of this substance.

Perry died on October 28, last year. The autopsy, released in December, found that the amount in actor's blood was at the level used for anesthetic surgery.

For decades, the Perry actor had abused narcotics, and in recent years had been treated for depression, anxiety, and pain.

Katamina was mentioned as the leading cause of death, and the autopsy report said that his death was accidental. /rel