Matthew Perry’s ex girlfriend has demanded police re-open the investigation into his death amid fears he had ‘rogue’ medical staff giving him drugs.
The Friends star, 54, was found face-down in the hot tub of his Los Angeles home on October 28 last year, with an autopsy later confirming that he died from the ‘acute effects of ketamine’ and drowning.
But Kayti Edwards, who dated Perry in 2006 and worked as his assistant in 2011 at the height of his drug addiction, is convinced that the investigation in his death, which was closed in January, should be reopened.
She told The Mirror that the troubled actor had a nurse on his payroll who, at the height of his drug addiction, was getting ’40 to 50 Vicodin in a day’ as he had a ‘way of enabling people to do things for him’.
Kayti believes the circumstances surrounding Perry’s death need ‘to be looked at again’ and cops should investigate medical staff ‘to see if he had a deal with any of them to give him some ketamine on the side’.
Matthew Perry, 54, was found face-down in the hot tub of his Los Angeles home on October 28 last year
The Friends star was later confirmed to have died from the ‘acute effects of ketamine’ and drowning. Pictured is Matt LeBlanc, Courteney Cox Arquette, Matthew Perry, David Schwimmer, Lisa Kudrow and Jennifer Aniston on the scene on Friends
Perry’s ex-girlfriend Kayti Edwards (pictured) is convinced that the investigation in his death, which was closed in January, should be reopened
Kayti has previously expressed her doubts surrounding the death of her ex, saying she did not believe he bought ketamine from the street.
She told The Mirror: ‘It needs to be looked at again. I know when Matthew was taking 40 to 50 Vicodin in a day, he was getting it from a nurse who would bring it to his house.
‘He had a way of enabling people to do things for him, saying “I’ll give you this amount of money if you keep your mouth shut and get me this”.’
‘He made it so hard to say no. He was like “Kayti, can you run down and pick up this envelope for me, I’ll give you $5,000.” It was hard to say no to that.
‘It’s why I want people to investigate medical staff to see if he had a deal with any of them to give him some ketamine on the side.’
Kayti, who is also the granddaughter of actress Julie Andrews, has also urged Oscar executives to pay tribute to the late Hollywood actor as part of the In Memoriam section of the awards show on Sunday.
Kayti said: ‘I know that it would mean a lot for him to be honoured at the Oscars in some way. I remember having a conversation with him about how it was always his dream to be recognised and not just for Friends.
‘He was always aware of the sad reality that Friends got tons of awards…but personally, I don’t think he got one.’
Kayti dated Matthew Perry in 2006 and worked as his assistant in 2011 at the height of his drug addiction
Kayti is also the granddaughter of actress Julie Andrews. Kayti is pictured far right, next to the legendary British film
Matthew died of the acute effects of ketamine combined with drowning, Los Angeles coroner’s office revealed
In his last post to his Instagram, posted the week he died, the star shared images of him in his hot tub, which is next to his infinity pool
The beloved actor, who rose to fame as Chandler Bing on the NBC sitcom Friends, was left out of the BAFTAs’ annual memoriam list during its film awards last month.
Following backlash from viewers, bosses confirmed he will be honoured in the forthcoming BAFTA television awards in May instead.
Kayti added: ‘I am not surprised at all by the backlash…he was so very well loved.
‘Although it’s interesting as he had a love-hate relationship with his film career.
‘He was always cast in a funny role or as the love interest but instead he always wanted roles that had more depth, and that were more meaningful.’
Kayti, a mother of four who now runs a horse ranch in Yucca, California, previously revealed she last spoke to Perry when his autobiography was published last year, detailing his shocking lifetime abuse of drugs and years of rehab.
Perry had a long and successful career in Hollywood, starring in titles including 17 Again with Zac Efron, The Kid with Bruce Willis and Fools Rush In with Salma Hayek.
Kayti has previously told how she believes Perry may have been prescribed ketamine as a treatment by his doctor, which may have pushed him back to doing drugs recreationally.
She said she was not surprised that he was found dead in the hot tub, because he often took drugs and then got in the water.
Kayti said his final Instagram post, of him alone in the hot tub he would die in, was a sign that he was using drugs again.
Perry was declared dead at the scene and the medical examiner conducted the autopsy on October 29.
The LA coroner’s office said at the time: ‘The cause of death for 54-year-old actor Matthew Langford Perry as the acute effects of ketamine,’
‘Contributing factors in Mr Perry’s death include drowning, coronary artery disease, and the effects of buprenorphine (used to treat opioid use disorder). The manner of death is accident.’
Ketamine can be prescribed as a medical treatment, but it is unclear if the drugs in Perry’s system were bought using a prescription.
The medical examiner reported that Perry had been sober for 19 months, and there was no trace of heroin, cocaine, meth or fentanyl in his system.
Perry’s blood ketamine levels were at 3,540 ng/ml in peripheral blood, and 3,271 ng/ml in central blood.
For a patient under general anesthetic, in a hospital, a blood ketamine level of 1,000 – 6,000 ng/ml would be normal, the medical examiner explained.
The medical examiner said Perry had a history of emphysema, diabetes, and drug use.
He was described as a ‘heavy tobacco user for many years but currently not smoking’.
The medical examiner also noted his ketamine infusion therapy.
A year before his death Perry released a tell-all memoir that included shocking details of his drug and alcohol addiction.
But he said in October 2022 that he was 18 months sober, though that was a year before his death.
Those who knew him maintain Perry was clean and sober at the time of his death.
When investigators were called to Perry’s home, they did not find any illegal drugs, but found prescription medication that was properly labeled and kept in storage bottles.
The medical examiner did find evidence of his years of drug and alcohol abuse, however, with Perry suffering from ‘chronic hepatic congestion, liver’ – a precursor to cirrhosis of the liver – although it had not advanced into cirrhosis.
He also had nephrosclerosis of the kidneys – a hardening of the tissues, caused by long-standing, poorly controlled high blood pressure and long term drug use.
Perry’s autopsy also found chronic pancreatic fibrosis – opioids are suspected of causing damage to the pancreas.
His heart and lungs were also significantly damaged.
Perry weighed 216lbs, and was pronounced mildly obese.
In the memoir, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing, Perry wrote that after his colon exploded in 2018, he was prescribed opiates that he deemed insufficient to deal with his pain.
This prompted him to turn to street dealers to supply him with potentially fatal, possibly fentanyl-laced OxyContin.
‘The street pills were something like $75 per pill, so I was giving the guy $3,000 at a time, many times a week,’ he wrote.
Perry wrote that he spent $9 million trying to get sober, going to 6,000 AA meetings, 15 times to rehab, and was in detox 65 times.
Friends star Matthew Perry was killed by ketamine and drowning, with his death ruled an accident. He is pictured on October 22 – the last time he was seen in public
Police officers taped off the street leading to Matthew Perry’s house where he was found dead on October 28
At his lowest, he was popping 55 Vicodin a day to fuel his addiction.
He said he overcame addiction in 2021 and was leading a healthier lifestyle.
He took up pickle ball – a game similar to tennis and table tennis – and usually played it twice a day, friends said.
Perry was found underwater by his assistant who lifted his head up to try to get him some air, first responders earlier revealed.
Captain Erik Scott, with the LAFD said: ‘ Los Angeles City Firefighters responded [and] found an adult male unconscious in a stand-alone hot tub.
‘A bystander had brought the man’s head above the water and gotten him to the edge, then firefighters removed him from the water upon their arrival.
‘A rapid medical assessment, sadly, revealed the man was deceased prior to first responder arrival.’
Perry was laid to rest at an intimate ceremony at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the Hollywood Hills attended by his Friends co-stars Jennifer Aniston, Matt LeBlanc, Lisa Kudrow, Courtney Cox, and David Schwimmer.
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