11-05-2025
Millionaire father of troubled socialite who saved Andrew O'Keefe from heroin overdose opens up on his daughter's 'demons' as she goes through rehab
The father of a Sydney socialite who raced to save Andrew O'Keefe after a heroin overdose says he will continue to stand by his troubled daughter.
Elisha Dalah, 38, performed CPR to save the former Deal or No Deal host after supplying him with the heroin that led to the overdose at O'Keefe's Vaucluse home in Sydney's eastern suburbs on September 14 last year.
Dalah's father, Michael, who is a former co-owner of Elizabeth Bay Marina, has spoken out after harrowing details about O'Keefe's overdose emerged.
The Sydney socialite cleaned vomit from the disgraced TV star's nose and mouth, and gave him Narcan, a drug which counteracts the effects of heroin before O'Keefe was taken to St Vincent's Hospital.
Dalah's family have said O'Keefe's overdose has been a wake-up call for the socialite.
She pleaded guilty to supplying heroin and was ordered to undertake a rehabilitation program last month after spending almost five months in custody while awaiting sentencing.
'She's in rehab at the moment and has to go by court order every day and it's doing her good, she's very vulnerable at the moment,' Michael told the Daily Telegraph.
'She got a big lesson from it (O'Keefe) and hopefully she is on the mend. It's a very sad illness and what happened has had an impact, and she's learning life must go on.
'As a family we hope and pray she is on the mend, that she can redeem herself from this terrible disease. She needs good friends.
Michael, who is considered one of Australia's largest private property owners, said he would give his daughter all the money he had if it would help.
He said the family is extremely worried about his daughter and described her battle with addiction as a 'demon in her'.
The socialite hails from an elite eastern suburbs family and is the elder sibling of Fishbowl founder Nathan, who is married to Victoria Secret model Georgia Fowler.
According to court documents, Dalah admitted to police that she and O'Keefe had consumed cocaine and heroin earlier that day.
'This is my fault,' Dalah told police following the overdose of O'Keefe, who was told he was 'lucky to be alive'.
Speaking in Downing Centre Local Court in April, Magistrate Rosheehan O'Meagher said a message needed to be sent to the community regarding the 'seriousness of the offence'.
'The maximum penalty for this offence in the district court is 15 years in prison, in the local court it is capped at two years,' she said.
'That shows you how serious an offence this is and it is treated as so because of the serious consequences of drug supply in terms of serious health implications, which I am sure you are aware of.'
Ms Dalah was ordered to undertake a rehabilitation program 'for as long as possible'.
'You've learnt some things, but looking at your record, we need you to get the message that if you keep offending you will end up in jail, and I don't think that's a life you want for yourself,' Magistrate O'Meagher said.
Dalah lives in the annex of her parents' $17million home in the same street in Point Piper as former Prime Minister Malcom Turnball.
She works as a barista at her family-owned business Laissez-Faire Catering in the city's Alexandria.
In 2023, Dalah she narrowly escaped jail after pleading guilty to thieving luxury face creams and designer clothing from a Westfield shopping centre a year prior.
The socialite was handed a 20-month intensive correction order and 200 hours of community service after
She was also fined $500 for entering Westfield Bondi Junction while banned.
O'Keefe has suffered a public battle against drug addiction and been in and out of rehabilitation centres for the past few years.
He faced Waverley Local Court in February to plead guilty to driving with meth in his system but escaped with a $440 fine.
The former Deal or No Deal host tested positive to meth while driving his Mercedes C200 in Sydney's eastern suburbs on July 28 last year.
O'Keefe was convicted and fined $440 for drug-driving and disqualified from getting behind the wheel for six months.
The disgraced ex-TV star pleaded guilty in October to trespassing, breaching an an apprehended violence order and meth possession.
He was fined $1,500 and handed a 30-month community corrections order which required him to attend rehab.
At the same time, he was fined $2,000 for driving with an illicit drug in his system at Darlinghurst in April and disqualified from getting behind the wheel for three months.
