Troubled former TV presenter Andrew O'Keefe will fight charges of trespassing, intimidation and contravening a court order, his new lawyer says. / (min cost $ 0 ) or signup to continue reading The accusations relate to an incident in late July, when the ex-Network Seven star allegedly threatened a man at a home in Sydney's eastern suburbs. O'Keefe's lawyer Jahan Kalantar told Waverley Local Court on Thursday he was fresh into the matter having been instructed to appear only days earlier.
He requested a week-long adjournment and indicated O'Keefe would plead not guilty when the matter returned to court on August 22. The 52-year-old has been excused from appearing if a lawyer attends. O'Keefe was initially held in custody overnight but was released on conditional bail after a magistrate heard he only put his foot in the door of the alleged victim's home.
He was a Seven presenter for more than 15 years, most notably hosting game show Deal or No Deal and breakfast show Weekend Sunrise. But in recent years his television appearances have been on news bulletins covering his frequent court appearances. O'Keefe has struggled with drug and mental health issues, which he told court he was on a "sincere endeavour" to address when placed on 12-month conditional release after pleading guilty to contravening a court order in August 2023.
He left court on bail earlier in August after allegedly breaching conditions tied to other matters a day after he pleaded guilty to driving offences and received a 12-month conditional release order. O'Keefe is also appealing convictions recorded in January for domestic violence and drug possession offences. His new lawyer rivals his client's prominence, boasting more than 400,000 followers on TikTok.
Mr Kalantar has grown his online following five-fold since the Law Society Journal profiled his content-creation efforts in February 2022. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 beyondblue 1300 22 4636 Advertisement Sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date. We care about the protection of your data.
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