The Irish Conor McGregor, world star of mixed martial arts (MMA), was sentenced, on Friday, November 22, by the Irish courts to pay nearly 250,000 euros in damages to Nikita Hand, a woman who accused him of having raped her on December 9. 2018.
McGregor, 36, was charged with “brutally raped and beaten” the complainant in a Dublin hotel room. For his part, he stated that the sexual relationship was consensual. This 35-year-old woman burst into tears when the verdict was announced, and later emphasized to the media that this trial had been for her. “a nightmare”. “I hope my story shows that you have to speak up, even if you are afraid. Speak, have a voice and continue fighting for justice”he urged.
Nicknamed “The Notorious”, Conor McGregor is one of the world stars of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), the most famous and profitable MMA league. He is known for his aggressive and provocative temperament, and has already been accused several times of sexual assault and violence in different countries.
After this trial that lasted about ten days, the Dublin High Court sentenced him to pay 248,603.60 euros to Nikita Hand, a sum that includes, in particular, medical expenses. METROme Hand had accused the martial arts star of pinning her to a bed and strangling her three times before raping her. On the stand, she said that “frozen” and thinking that he would never see his daughter again.
The complainant also accused a friend of Mr McGregor, James Lawrence, of sexually assaulting her at the same hotel, but was unsuccessful in this matter. The two men, the complainant, who was a hairdresser, and one of her colleagues were partying at this hotel the night and morning of the incident, consuming alcohol and cocaine.
Conor McGregor was in court with his family and his fiancee, Dee Devlin. During the trial, her lawyers accused Nikita Hand of trying “extort” money.
Several sexual assault investigations
The former featherweight and lightweight champion has not fought in the octagon since July 2021 due to a leg injury. Its resumption, scheduled for June, has been postponed. In 2020, the Irishman was the highest paid athlete in the world according to the magazine Forbeswith 170 million euros in profits.
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He was investigated for sexual assault during a 2023 NBA Finals game in Miami, which did not result in charges. Conor McGregor was also the subject of a complaint in Corsica in 2020 for attempted sexual assault and sexual exhibition, which was dismissed. “for an insufficiently characterized crime”. He had also previously been implicated in two attacks in the United States.
In the case of Nikita Hand, the prosecution had decided to abandon the criminal proceedings against Conor McGregor, according to him due to lack of sufficient evidence to obtain a conviction. The complainant indicated that she felt “absolutely devastated” for this decision and “abandoned”according to the public media RTE. The day after the events, she had to be transferred by ambulance to a specialized sexual violence unit at a Dublin hospital.
During his examination, physical and psychological trauma was noted, including severe bruising to his wrists and neck pain. Nikita Hand has since quit her job and has not been able to return to it, it reported. She says she couldn’t pay for consultations with a psychologist.
