Game Show Host Arrested Yet Again: More Trouble for Andrew O’Keefe

Troubled former TV personality Andrew O’Keefe is facing a new round of charges after allegedly threatening a man and driving under the influence of drugs. O’Keefe, the former host of Australia’s Deal or No Deal and numerous other Seven network shows, was arrested in the Bellevue Hill suburb of Sydney, Australia, on Sunday.

Police stopped the disgraced TV personality in a Mercedes sedan at around 11:45 a.m. local time Sunday while he was driving through Sydney’s eastern suburb, according to 9 News. O’Keefe reportedly returned a positive result for drugs in a roadside test, and a second oral fluid test at Waverley police station also came back positive. The arrest came just a short while after he allegedly threatened a man at a home in an exclusive Sydney harbourside suburb. He was charged with contravening an Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) and stalk/intimidate intend fear physical harm.

During a hearing at Waverley Local Court on Monday, per news.com.au, prosecutors alleged that O’Keefe allegedly confronted the man, whose identity was not revealed, “potentially as a matter of jealousy” following a “rekindling” with his former partner. Prosecutors told the court, “it’s certainly not been a situation where just turned up at the door and knocked on the door to say hello, there has been this aggression,” adding that O’Keefe knew he was “not supposed to be” at the property. The TV personality also allegedly admitted to police that he put “one foot through the door.”

However, O’Keefe’s lawyer, Sharon Ramsden, describing the case as a “one-on-one” matter, said that when O’Keefe showed up at the property, there were concerns a burglar could be inside. Ramsden said that O’Keefe was set to have lunch with the ex-partner later that day, and when he arrived at the home, “he saw the door ajar. She (the ex-partner) is not home and there is no threat to her and there is no statement from her, which is important in assessing the prosecution case.” She claimed that the man who made the complaint against O’Keefe had been the one who was threatening, telling the court that the man told the former host, “If you don’t leave it’s going to be very bad for you.”

As for the crack pipe found in his pocket, prosecutors told the court that O’Keefe told police the jacket “was worn by another person” and did not belong to him.

Magistrate Jacqueline Milledge granted ultimately granted O’Keefe’s bail. Under conditions of the bail, O’Keefe must report to police three times per week, undergo daily urine testing, and refrain from drugs and alcohol. His sister, who was in the court’s public gallery, must pay a $1,000 surety to the court. However, Milledge told O’Keefe “there’s a real concern you were somewhere you shouldn’t have been and that drugs might still be a factor in your life, but I’m prepared to give you an opportunity to continue with your treatment.” O’Keefe will return before the court next month.

His Sunday arrest marks O’Keefe’s latest run-in with the law and comes just weeks after he was issued a Court Attendance Notice for driving with a suspended license. In January, he was convicted on a domestic violence charge dating back to September 2021. He has also been found guilty of common assault, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, two counts of possessing a prohibited drug, and contravening an apprehended violence order.