On the first day of the trial, the court was told that Ms. Hand’s house had been raided by men in balaclavas.
They’d ‘burst’ into her bedroom in the night and left her partner with stab wounds.
Her young daughter dialled 999 and the police promptly arrived.
Whilst Ms. Hand’s legal team didn’t suggest that McGregor was involved in the incident, they requested for it to be included in the evidence.
John Gordon, her lawyer, said: “We do make the claim that it is not an untargeted attack and it arose from supporters of the first named defendant (McGregor).”
Mr Gordon asserted that the horrific experience was relevant as it showed why Ms Hand had to move out of the Drimnagh area.
However, Judge Alexander Owens ruled against the break in being included in the trial itself.
He felt that it would open up speculation that McGregor himself was directly involved.
Remy Farrell, senior counsel for McGregor, deemed it ‘extraordinary’ to ‘smuggle something like that into the case’.
He blasted it as ‘unprecedented’.
Ultimately, it was deemed ‘completely and utterly irrelevant’ by Judge Owens.
David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
In the end, Ms. Hand still won her damages from the fighter.
The alleged rape incident took place in a Dublin hotel six years ago in December 2018. The Irish MMA fighter was accused of pinning her to a bed, choking her three times, and ‘brutally’ raping and ‘battering’ her, as per Sky News.
McGregor denied any wrongdoing.
She was also in court for a separate charge of sexual assault against McGregor’s friend, James Lawrence, who also denied any wrongdoing.
However, she lost that case against Lawrence.
All in all, the trial on the McGregor allegations lasted eight days and saw three days of speeches before a twelve person jury.
In response to the verdict, McGregor tweeted: “I will be appealing today’s decision. The judge’s instruction and the modest award given was for assault, not for aggravated or exemplary damages.
“I am disappointed that the jury did not hear all the evidence that the DPP reviewed. I am with my family now, focused on my future. Thank you to all my support worldwide.”
LADbible has contacted McGregor’s representatives for comment.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact The Survivors Trust for free on 08088 010 818, available 10am-12.30pm, 1.30pm-3pm and 6pm-8pm Monday to Thursday, 10am-12.30pm and 1.30pm-3pm on Fridays, 10am-12.30pm on Saturdays and 6pm-8pm on Sundays.
Featured Image Credit: PA/David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile via Getty Images
Topics: Conor McGregor, Crime, UK News
Ben Thompson
Woman who accused Conor McGregor of raping her wins case against him
The woman won her claims in court
A woman has won her claim in civil court against Conor McGregor after accusing him of raping her.
The case was tried in a High Court in Ireland after a woman sought damages for assault. McGregor, 36, will be made to pay £200,000 in damages.
The alleged incident took place in a Dublin hotel six years ago in December 2018. The Irish MMA fighter was accused of pinning Nikita Hand to a bed, choking her three times, and ‘brutally’ raping and ‘battering’ her.
McGregor denied any wrongdoing.
Conor McGregor arrives at court with his partner, Dee Devlin (David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile via Getty Images)
She was also in court for a separate charge of sexual assault against McGregor’s friend, James Lawrence, who also denied any wrongdoing.
Hand lost the case against Lawrence, however, she was successful in her application for damages against McGregor.
This comes after eight days of evidence and three days of speeches, with a twelve person jury started their deliberations yesterday.
Jury members were told how she was left with ‘extensive injuries’, including tenderness on her neck, bloody scratches on her chest, and purple bruising around her hands and wrists, as per Sky News.
The trial heard how the pair knew each other and had occasional contact through social media.
Before the alleged incident, he’d picked her and a friend up in his car, the court heard.
(Edward Berthelot/GC Images)
She revealed in court how he ‘came on to her’, with her rejecting his advances due to the fact that she was on her period.
However, McGregor’s lawyers contested the allegations, and accused Hand of attempted ‘extortion’.
McGregor had previously claimed that himself and Lawrence both had consensual sex with her.
The UFC fighter provided no comment as he left the courthouse in Dublin.
On Monday (18 November), McGregor’s legal team had encouraged jurors to try put aside if they disliked, or even ‘loathed’ the fighter, who is a controversial figure in Ireland.
Hand said that he ‘would not take no for an answer’, RTE reports. She also claimed that Mr Lawrence had sex with her without her consent, a claim he denied, stating they had consensual sex.
She states she did not remember this, and called it a ‘made-up story’, as per the BBC.
The verdict came to a silent courtroom, with Mr Justice Owens presiding stating that ‘anyone who makes a scene [would] find themselves in jail’.
Hand was emotional, hugging her partner and friends in tears after the judge and jury left the court room.
Ms Hand also provided the following statement from outside court in which she thanked her family and partner, her legal team, and doctors and nurses at a sexual assault clinic she visited.
BREAKING: Nikita Hand speaks outside court.
Conor McGregor tweeted the following in response to the jury verdict:
“I will be appealing today’s decision. The judge’s instruction and the modest award given was for assault, not for aggravated or exemplary damages.
“I am disappointed that the jury did not hear all the evidence that the DPP reviewed. I am with my family now, focused on my future. Thank you to all my support worldwide.”
LADbible has contacted McGregor’s representatives for comment.
If you have been affected by any of the issues in this article and wish to speak to someone in confidence, contact The Survivors Trust for free on 08088 010 818, available 10am-12.30pm, 1.30pm-3pm and 6pm-8pm Monday to Thursday, 10am-12.30pm and 1.30pm-3pm on Fridays, 10am-12.30pm on Saturdays and 6pm-8pm on Sundays.
Featured Image Credit: Edward Berthelot/GC Images David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile via Getty Images
Topics: Conor McGregor, Crime
Michael Slavin
Conor McGregor and Chris Brown go on a ‘proper mad’ party together in Dublin
The UFC star has since deleted the post
Conor McGregor partied with his friend Chris Brown in Dublin this month, describing their catch-up as a ‘proper mad night’.
The singer was in McGregor’s home country of Ireland as part of his European tour and decided to make a pitstop to party with ‘The Notorious One’ ahead of his show at the capital’s 3Arena.
And it looks like they had quite the evening.
Alongside a series of photos, the UFC star wrote in a now-deleted post: “Me and the homie @chrisbrownofficial #propermadnight #welcometoireland.”
In one snap, the friends appear to be sat on a couch of a hotel room looking ready for their night out.
Another, which was almost definitely captured later on, shows them with a shot in their hands as McGregor sits at a bar with no shirt on.
It’s not known why the MMA mogul deleted the post, although we do know he received a fair bit of flak for it.
Many people focused on the fact that McGregor is set to make his UFC return with a fight against Michael Chandler this year.
Instagram/@thenotoriousmma
One commenter asked: “Shouldn’t you be training and abstaining from drink and smoking?”
Another wrote: “Bro stay away from them cigarettes bruh we need a win this year.”
“Chandler is gonna beat your a** so bad,” added a third, while a fourth said, “Dude Chandler is going to sleep you if you don’t get to it.”
Over on Twitter, one user who shared a photo of the pair wrote: “Conor McGregor and Chris Brown… The jokes just write themselves.”
A second chimed in to say: “You can imagine the level of intelligent conversation there.”
Others focused on the unusual red marks on McGregor’s shoulder, including this person who asked: “Why does Conor have pepperoni on his right shoulders?”
Instagram/@thenotoriousmma
But the 34-year-old mixed martial artist later shared a photo revealing that he recently underwent cupping – a form of alternative medicine in which a local suction is created on the skin using heated cups.
While McGregor prepares for his UFC comeback, Brown is currently on tour across Europe.
Last summer, he performed at his first UK event for the first time since being banned from the country following his assault on former girlfriend Rihanna.
The 33-year-old rapper took to the stage at Wireless Music Festival in London on 1 July, and just like the McGregor snaps, his appearance prompted a strong reaction from the online community – albeit for a different reason.
“If you’re planning on watching Chris Brown at Wireless you may as well just say you hate women with your chest,” wrote one person on Twitter.
“All up in arms about Amber Heard but will happily support an abuser as long as he makes mediocre music and said sorry.”
Another commented: “Not Wireless bragging on their TikTok that Rihanna turned up. You guys had Chris Brown playing are u not ashamed?”
If you or someone you know is experiencing abuse in a relationship, call the Freephone 24/7 National Domestic Violence Helpline, run by Women’s Aid in partnership with Refuge, on 0808 2000 247 or visit www.womensaid.org.uk
