The woman who accused UFC fighter Conor McGregor of raping her has claimed that masked men broke into her house earlier this year.
Her partner was stabbed in the disturbing incident.
Nikita Hand was awarded €248,603 (£207,000) in damages on November 22.
It came after a trial over her accusation that McGregor had raped her at the Beacon Hotel in Dublin in 2018.
PA)
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.
