Sahara Ray’s daughter’s father is revealed after model’s tragic overdose death at 34

In the latest news in the tragic death of model Sahara Ray, the identity of her eight-month-old daughter’s father has been revealed.

Sahara Ray’s daughter’s father was identified on a birth certificate as Michael Bradley Dow, 38, TMZ reported on Tuesday after reviewing birth records. 

Ray, 34, gave birth to the child in Los Angeles this past January 27 at 12:19 a.m., according to records reviewed by the outlet.

The Australian-American model opened up about giving birth to her first child earlier this year.

She said in a social media post, ‘Snow Ray 1/27/2026 … I can’t believe I made this little miracle with my body. I’m so proud and so in love.’ 

In July, she had taken to Instagram with images of her daughter, writing, ‘My whole heart… Baby Snow.’ 

The Daily Mail has reached out to legal representatives for Dow for further comment on the story. 

Ray, who was previously linked to Justin Bieber, tragically died at 34 in a Los Angeles area hospital Sunday, two days after a fentanyl overdose left her on life support, a source close to Ray told The Daily Mail this week.

Ray’s relatives had decided to remove her from life support on Sunday afternoon, the source told The Daily Mail, adding that she had been surrounded by family at her time of death.

‘Sahara was an incredibly passionate and kind young woman who loved her family, fashion, her daughter Snow, and surfing,’ her mother Gretchen Bach, a real estate agent, told The Daily Mail.

Bach added, ‘We’re feeling the love that is pouring in from her cherished friends, fans and the many communities that she was part of around the world.’

Ray, the daughter of surfer Tony Ray, was initially linked to Bieber in 2016, and established herself as a model and social media star with more than 905,000 followers on her Instagram.

The model, who had studied at The Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM), also had presided over a swimwear brand called Sahara Ray Swim.

Ray more than two years ago spoke publicly about how she’d been diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome after she had been involved in an April 2024 auto accident in which a drunk driver had struck her.

‘My whole life changed in an instant,’ she said on social media, adding that she had suffered partial paralysis at the time from her thighs to her feet, leaving her to use a wheelchair and walker.

She said that the aftereffects of the accident sent her body ‘into shock,’ which resulted in ‘this crazy sickness.’

Ray added, ‘I got really really sick for like a week-and-a-half to two weeks. During that time I barely ate any food because I couldn’t keep it down and my body got really weak.’

Ray said she had to be transported to an emergency room after dealing with tingling and numbness in her feet and legs.

‘This has been really hard to deal with,’ she said, ‘and I’ve been trying to keep a good attitude and be hopeful that my feeling comes back.’