- Former celebrity game show host has become a prized target for taunts
- Magistrate says he must enter a plea during his next court appearance
EXCLUSIVE
Andrew O’Keefe is being relentlessly bullied by fellow inmates in prison as the one-time TV golden boy contends with his sad and solitary life behind bars.
Daily Mail Australia can reveal the 52-year-old’s celebrity status has afforded him no luxuries nor special privileges inside the Metropolitan Remand and Reception Centre in Sydney‘s notorious Silverwater jail complex.
Instead he has become a constant target of cruel taunts from the other accused criminals who call the centre home, with prison insiders revealing inmates take every opportunity to mock the former Deal or No Deal host about his tragic downfall.
Sources said one group of inmates was particularly merciless and crossed their arms in front of their faces every time they spotted O’Keefe in the prison yard while shouting ‘No Deal!’ at him.
Despite the ongoing bullying, O’Keefe has not made any formal complaints about his treatment inside the centre, preferring to keep a low profile and to himself as much as possible.
Prison officials have not deemed the heckling serious enough to segregate the fallen Channel Seven star, who has been sharing a two-bed cell with another inmate at the centre, from the general population or offer him protective custody.
His daily routine is a world away from the glitzy life he once led at his sprawling Bondi home while raking in $800,000 a year from his dual presenting roles on Weekend Sunrise and hit game show The Chase Australia.
When he was last at the remand centre two years ago, O’Keefe claimed the prison guards teased him about his fall from grace, only for the guards to accuse the one-time lawyer of being a ‘demanding prima donna’.
But this time there is no such animosity between O’Keefe and his keepers, with the guards noting the former TV presenter was far more demure about his tragic demise.
‘Last time he was here, he was mouthy, entitled and arrogant,’ one prison source inside Silverwater told Daily Mail Australia.
‘This time, he’s just really quiet and sticks to himself.
‘We haven’t had any issues with him – it’s actually a bit sad seeing him like this.’
O’Keefe’s spartan prison cell includes a metal bunk, open steel toilet, jug and sandwich maker – but little else.
He is bustled out of bed at 7am each day for ‘let go’ – when he is given a prison ‘breakfast pack’ comprising milk, bread, cereal and jam and is then free to roam the yard or watch a shared TV in the common room with the centre’s other accused criminals.
There are roll calls at 9am and midday, when O’Keefe and his cohorts are given their ‘lunch pack’, usually consisting of a sandwich and a piece of fruit.
All meals are eaten in the inmates’ cells before they are locked away for the day from 3pm and not allowed out again until the following morning.
His dinner is heated up from a chill pack and also given to him at 3pm. It is the only hot meal O’Keefe eats during the day.
During his long nights caged in with his cellmate, O’Keefe has access to a tablet computer on which he can pay to watch TV or play card games such as solitaire but he is not permitted to access the internet.
Although he is allowed to purchase treats and additional groceries, he is limited to spending a total of $150 at the prison store each month.
Corrective Services NSW would not comment on how O’Keefe was coping with life behind bars ‘for security and privacy reasons’.
O’Keefe has been remanded in custody since last Monday after he was arrested for drug possession and breaching his bail conditions.
The troubled entertainer’s latest run in with the law came two days after he overdosed on heroin in his eastern Sydney apartment and had to be revived by paramedics and taken to hospital.
O’Keefe’s lawyer was back in court on Thursday as a seperate, unrelated charge was mentioned for the first time.
His solicitor Jahan Kalantar sought a two-week adjournment so he could seek advice from O’Keefe.
The magistrate consented but said O’Keefe must enter a plea when he next appears in court on October 8.
