'God help him': Magistrate's grim warning to Andrew O'Keefe
A magistrate has said troubled former television star Andrew O’Keefe is lucky to be alive after he overdosed at a party in Sydney’s eastern suburbs – as he is set to stay locked up until at least next month.
The 52-year-old was revived by paramedics early Saturday morning after a drug overdose at a home in Vaucluse.
Andrew O’Keefe leaves Waverley police station last month.Credit: Dominic Lorrimer
Emergency services took O’Keefe to St Vincent’s Hospital, where he was treated and later discharged.
On Monday, the former Deal or No Deal host reported to Rose Bay police station to meet previous bail conditions when officers arrested him and allegedly found methamphetamine in his nearby car at Point Piper at about 4pm.
He was taken to Waverley police station, where he was charged with breaching bail and possessing prohibited drugs and refused police bail.
After spending the night in custody, O’Keefe’s matters were briefly mentioned at Waverley Local Court on Tuesday. His lawyer did not make an application for O’Keefe to be released on bail.
The former Deal Or No Deal host arriving at Downing Centre Court at an earlier appearance.Credit: Steven Siewert
O’Keefe was not required to attend court and did not appear via audiovisual link.
Magistrate Jacqueline Milledge, looking down at court documents, said the case was “just awful”. “He’s lucky to be alive,” she said.
Milledge said being in jail is “the best thing he can do … if he wants to stay alive”.
O’Keefe’s lawyer said he may make a release application at court next month if there is a rehabilitation bed available – with Milledge responding that he’s “been there, done that”.
“It’s absolutely tragic – it’s very, very sad – but the last time he walked in through that door, and he’s a frequent flyer, he goes to the dock and he sits there and he’s so used to it,” she said.
O’Keefe has been in and out of courtrooms in recent years.Credit: Peter Rae
“The mental health applications and rehabs, they’ve all been tried and tested and failed.”
Milledge said she did not see “how the same thing over and over again is going to work for him”.
“God help him,” she said. “It’s a shame he doesn’t have an epiphany.”
O’Keefe, whose contract with the Seven Network expired in late 2020, has been in and out of courtrooms in recent years as he has battled with drug addiction and mental health issues.
He spent a night in custody in July after he was allegedly caught driving under the influence of drugs at Bellevue Hill, shortly after he allegedly threatened a man at an address in Point Piper.
Last week, O’Keefe lost an appeal against domestic violence convictions after failing to convince a judge the victim’s injuries were self-inflicted.
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O’Keefe was found to have pushed the woman, punched her, forced her to the ground, kicked her in the thigh and scratched her chest during an argument in 2021.
O’Keefe avoided jail in January over the incident after he was found guilty of common assault, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and contravening an apprehended violence order.
He is next due to face Waverley Local Court on the drug possession charge as well as his recent intimidation and AVO breach charges on October 10.
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