Keith Morrison, Matthew Perry’s stepfather, has spoken out following the news that several people have been arrested in connection with the Friends star’s death.
The Dateline correspondent’s family issued a statement through NBC in the wake of the charges becoming public, expressing gratitude for the outcome of the law enforcement investigation.
“We were and still are heartbroken by Matthew’s death, but it has helped to know law enforcement has taken his case very seriously,” they said. “We look forward to justice taking its course.”
On Aug. 15, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Central District of California revealed that five people had been charged in connection with the actor’s death, including two doctors, the actor’s assistant, who found him deceased in his at-home jacuzzi on Saturday, Oct. 28, 2023, and a dealer known as the “Ketamine Queen.”
“These defendants cared more about profiting off of Mr. Perry than caring for his well-being,” said United States Attorney Martin Estrada, after search warrants uncovered texts between defendants like “I wonder how much this moron will pay,” and, “Lets [sic] find out.”
After news of his death broke, one defendant also sent, “Delete all our messages.”
The dealers continued to sell ketamine to Perry’s assistant on his behalf, despite being aware for at least a week prior to his passing that his “addiction was spiraling out of control,” and his assistant helped to inject Perry with the drug, including at least once on the day he died.
Perry’s cause of death, which was originally labeled as an apparent drowning, was ruled accidental by the medical examiner’s office, with the “acute effects of ketamine”—which he seemed to be self-medicating with in between formal, medically-monitored ketamine infusions—seemingly leading to his drowning. The Los Angeles Police Department later opened an investigation into his death, alongside the DEA and the U.S. Postal Inspector, to determine the source of the controlled substance.
Next: George Clooney Reflects on Late Friend Matthew Perry’s ‘Heartbreaking’ Addiction Struggle
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