By RICHARD WINTON Los Angeles Times/TNS
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LOS ANGELES — A criminal investigation into Matthew Perry’s death from acute effects of the prescription drug ketamine is nearing its conclusion, with prosecutors ultimately deciding whether those with ties to how the actor got the drug will face charges, two law enforcement sources told The Times.

Perry was found dead in the hot tub of his swimming pool at his Pacific Palisades home on Oct. 28. Trace amounts of ketamine — which is sometimes used to treat depression — were found in Perry’s stomach, according to the Los Angeles County medical examiner. But the level found in his blood was about the same as would be used during general anesthesia, his autopsy showed.

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Investigators with the Los Angeles Police Department, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the U.S. Postal Service have linked several people to procurement of the ketamine, according to one law enforcement source who was not authorized to discuss the probe.

Ultimately, it will be up to federal and possibly local prosecutors to decide whether criminal charges are filed. Authorities have not publicly identified anyone connected to the investigation.

The ketamine in Perry’s system caused cardiovascular overstimulation and respiratory depression, the medical examiner reported. Other contributing factors in his death included drowning, coronary artery disease and the effects of buprenorphine, a medication used to treat opioid-use disorder.

The actor was best known for playing the sarcastic and witty Chandler Bing on NBC’s “Friends” for 10 seasons, from 1994 to 2004. In his 2022 memoir, Perry said he began abusing substances at the age of 14 and landed the role on “Friends” a decade later. Fame increased his dependency on alcohol and drugs. At one point, he said in his book, he took nearly five dozen pills a day.

According to the medical examiner, Perry was undergoing ketamine infusion therapy every other day for a period of time but had reduced that intake, and his last known infusion was a week and a half before his death. The ketamine found in Perry’s system at the time of his death could not have been from that earlier infusion as the drug typically disappears in detectable amounts in three to four hours after intake, the coroner said.