Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
ABC News
ABC News
National

Woman allegedly assaulted by Andrew O'Keefe was 'shaking like a leaf', neighbour tells court

A neighbour of a woman who was allegedly assaulted by former television host Andrew O'Keefe has told a Sydney court of hearing an aggressive voice coming from the apartment below hers before seeing her "shaking like a leaf" afterwards.

Mr O'Keefe, 51, denies charges of common assault, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, resisting a police officer and contravening an AVO over the alleged incident in September 2021.

The complainant's neighbour, Nicole Taylor, today told Downing Centre Local Court she was cooking dinner when she heard what she assumed was Mr O'Keefe's voice singing through the "unforgiving" floorboards of her Sydney apartment.

Ms Taylor said she lived directly upstairs from the complainant and had seen Mr O'Keefe there "several times" before.

"It later escalated to the sound of a scuffle, almost, there was a disturbance," Ms Taylor said, describing the sounds of two voices.

"I could hear something was going a bit wrong down there."

The witness said one voice seemed calmer and a lower-sounding voice sounded "aggressive and angry".

Ms Taylor said she went downstairs and when Mr O'Keefe opened the door, she asked him if he was alright.

"He just looked out and didn't say a word, but acknowledged me and shut the door."

Ms Taylor said when the yelling continued, she went to collect a pen and paper to write her number on a note and slip it under her neighbour's door.

The complainant then "pulled" Ms Taylor into the apartment, she said. 

"She was shaking like a leaf," Ms Taylor said.

The witness said she noticed scratches on both of the complainant's forearms and across her chest.

When she asked the complainant why she was limping, she said the woman told her she'd been kicked.

Ms Taylor testified that she had also seen Mr O'Keefe, who seemed "a bit agitated", "flustered" and "angry", and asked where he was going and if he was OK.

"He said: 'What do you think'," Ms Taylor told the court.

Ms Taylor said when she and the complainant were "debriefing" after police had left, the complainant told her Mr O'Keefe had spat in her face.

Two police officers who spoke with Mr O'Keefe on the night have told the court he raised the topic of the complainant self-inflicting injuries.

The hearing continues.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.