Latest news with #rapeCase
The Independent
a day ago
- The Independent
McGregor continues appeal without fresh evidence
Conor McGregor's legal team has withdrawn a bid to introduce fresh evidence in his appeal against a decision in a civil case in which a woman accused him of raping her. Former hairdresser Nikita Hand, 35, sued the mixed martial arts fighter over an incident at a south Dublin hotel in December 2018. He was said to have 'brutally raped and battered' Ms Hand in a penthouse at the Beacon Hotel. During a three-week case at the High Court in Dublin last November, McGregor told the court he had consensual sex with Ms Hand. After six hours and 10 minutes of deliberating, the jury of eight women and four men found McGregor civilly liable for assault. Ms Hand was awarded 248,603.60 euro (about £206,000) in damages. McGregor was ordered by a judge to pay Ms Hand 100,000 euro (£85,000) of the damages and 200,000 euro (£170,000) of an expected 1.3 million euro (£1.1 million) in legal costs before the appeal, which the court heard had been done. Ms Hand, also known as Nikita Ni Laimhin, lost her case against another man, James Lawrence, who she accused of assaulting her by allegedly having sex without her consent at the same hotel. McGregor has since sought an appeal which was initially expected to include new evidence. On Tuesday morning, the Court of Appeal in Dublin heard that McGregor would no longer be relying on additional evidence that had not been given to the initial trial for his appeal. That evidence was reported to relate to two neighbours of Ms Hand who had alleged they had seen her be assaulted by a former partner. However, his legal team said that after receiving new applications relating to the evidence to be given by pathologist Professor Jack Crane, they could no longer sustain that ground of appeal. John Gordon, SC, for Ms Hand, said it was 'frankly not appropriate' for the ground to be withdrawn on that basis, adding he had only been told of the development 10 minutes earlier. He objected to the withdrawal of the ground and argued he should still be allowed to cross-examine the neighbours. He said his client had been 'put through the wringer yet again' and that the court should not permit the appellant to 'waltz in here and then they can walk away from this'. Mr Gordon said there could potentially be matters relating to perjury arising out of the developments. Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy, alongside Mr Justice Brian O'Moore and Mr Justice Patrick MacGrath, said it cannot be the case that further submissions relating to Prof Crane could solely be the reason to withdraw the appeal matter of the neighbours' evidence. Mark Mulholland KC, for McGregor, said he was applying to withdraw the matter on a 'holistic view' of the whole case and after taking instructions. Ms Justice Kennedy said it was 'unsatisfactory' that it was being brought to the court at a late stage, but permitted the withdrawing of the ground. Following the withdrawal of that application, Remy Farrell, SC, also for McGregor, advanced the remaining four grounds of the appeal – largely relating to the right to silence and 'no comment' answers to questions during garda interviews. He raised the issue of the cross-examination of McGregor during the original trial by Mr Gordon. He said an 'enormous amount of no comment material' had been entered into the hearings to no actual proper end. Mr Farrell said that Mr Gordon had raised more than 100 'no comment' answers given by McGregor while being interviewed by gardai on the basis that it related to a position put forward by the fighter that he had been fully co-operative with gardai. Mr Farrell said this was allowed to proceed by the trial judge, with Mr Justice Alexander Owens telling Mr Gordon multiple times to get to that specific purpose of that line of questioning. However, putting forward the appeal, McGregor's counsel said this did not occur – and was in itself based on an 'entirely incorrect' paraphrasing of what the appellant had actually said. Mr Farrell said his client had said that he had made a comment about wanting to 'get everything correct' in seeking out the 'best advice' from his solicitors – rather than saying he had been fully co-operative with gardai. He said the plaintiff had used this to construct a 'hook' that McGregor had said he wanted to tell everything to gardai, adding: 'With respect, that's not what it says.' Mr Farrell said it was not the case that McGregor had said he had told gardai everything. He said the matter was of 'totemic importance' in the trial, and that the jury was not entitled to draw any adverse inference from the no comment answers. He said it was 'manifestly wrong' and 'blatantly incorrect' for Mr Justice Owens to tell the jury the questioning was allowed as McGregor had raised his status as someone trying to sort out matters with the guards as best he can. Mr Farrell argued that the line of questioning was 'wholly impermissible' and was inviting someone to draw an inference that there was 'no smoke without fire' when invoking the right to silence. McGregor's counsel said the judge appeared to have 'somewhat lost control of the issue' and instead later told the jury during the charge that it could still be allowed for the different purpose of understanding background material to McGregor's answers and understanding the sequence of interviews and statements. He suggested the judge was 'scrambling for some other justification' for the admission of the evidence. Mr Farrell said there had been 'various vague circling' around a suggestion of whether McGregor had been co-operative or not, but it had at no point been put to him that he had been untruthful in his answers. He likened it to jazz afficiandos having to 'listen to the notes not played' but said this was 'simply incorrect' and would have 'profound implications' in cases. Meanwhile, he also raised an 'oddity' in the issue paper considered by the jury around potential distinctions between battery and sexual assault. The hearings continue.
BBC News
2 days ago
- BBC News
Conor McGregor begins appeal against civil rape case finding
Former mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter Conor McGregor has begun an appeal against the finding of a civil rape 2024 a woman who accused him of raping her won her claim against him for damages.A jury found McGregor sexually assaulted Nikita Hand in a Dublin hotel in December was ordered to pay her more than €248,000 (£206,000) in damages. The Republic of Ireland's Court of Appeal was told on Tuesday morning that McGregor had withdrawn an application to have new evidence entered at the proposed evidence was from a couple, Samantha O'Reilly and Steven Cummins, who are former neighbours of Nikita Hand.A previous preliminary hearing was told that they claimed to have witnessed a row between Ms Hand and her former partner Stephen Redmond in December court heard McGregor believed the new evidence suggested that bruising on Nikita Hand's body could have been caused by her former an affidavit, Ms Hand had described the allegations are untrue and lies. Nikita Hand's barrister calls for apology The former MMA fighter's legal team announced in court that they were now withdrawing their application to have the new evidence admitted.A barrister for McGregor said he was withdrawing the application to introduce the new evidence partly on the basis that there was no legal authority to bring in other evidence supporting the claims made by Ms O'Reilly.A barrister for Ms Hand said his client had been put through the wringer over the issue and should receive an said she had responded to the suggested new evidence by saying it was "all lies" and that had now been also said McGregor should be referred for "subornation of perjury", meaning inducing people to commit barrister said an affidavit had been sworn calling Ms Hand and her then partner a has also abandoned an application to introduce new evidence from the former state pathologist for Northern Ireland state pathologist Prof Jack remainder of the appeal, before three Appeal Court judges, is now Hand is at the hearing along with family and friends.
Telegraph
6 days ago
- Telegraph
Like his good friend Donald Trump, Conor McGregor rides out any scandal
When Conor McGregor was convicted of sucker-punching a man in a Dublin pub in 2019, he bought the pub and 'barred' his victim. Fast-forward to last week and he reportedly did not even need to lift a finger for the latest recipient of one of his left hooks to be thrown out of Ibiza's Pacha nightclub. It seems that whatever the crime or controversy, sooner or later the world's most infamous mixed martial arts fighter ends up coming out of it on top. Next week he could take major step in that direction when it comes to the most serious alleged offence committed by a man who has become the living embodiment of his nickname, 'The Notorious'. The Republic of Ireland's Court of Appeal is set to consider an application for new evidence to be introduced in his battle against a civil ruling that he raped Nikita Hand at a Dublin hotel in December 2018. That ruling, delivered by a jury at the Irish capital's High Court in November, meant McGregor was ordered to pay the mother of one more than €248,000 (£206,000) in damages. McGregor, who faced no criminal charges over the alleged rape after prosecutors deemed there was 'no reasonable prospect of conviction', immediately announced his intention to appeal. That appeal was lodged in February, and it emerged in April that he was attempting to introduce new evidence alleging Hand had been assaulted by her then partner on the night McGregor was found to have raped her. The evidence has been provided by two former neighbours of Hand, one of whom has signed a sworn affidavit claiming to have seen her being punched after she returned home that evening. Hand, who told November's civil trial that McGregor had 'brutally raped and battered' her, signed an affidavit calling her neighbours' allegations 'lies'. Even if the Court of Appeal rules the new evidence inadmissible or refuses to quash last year's verdict, McGregor already appears to have found a way of emerging from it all remarkably unscathed. It all comes amid a burgeoning 'bromance' with the man who arguably laid out the blueprint for him to do so. McGregor was still awaiting his trial last year when Donald Trump became the first former US president to be convicted of a felony after being found guilty of 34 charges linked to hush-money payments made to ex-adult star Stormy Daniels. The verdict did not prevent Trump running for re-election and, weeks later, he survived a would-be assassin's bullet on the campaign trail. McGregor, who had caused a political earthquake at the end of 2023 by signalling his intention to run for the presidency of his own country, posted to his 10 million followers on X: 'A 78 year old multiple billionaire he should be on a yacht on the med touring golf courses. But he is not. He is in Pennsylvania spitting out bullets! Running for the love of his country! God speed Donald! God bless the United States.' Whether Trump saw the message or not, less than two months after McGregor's own court defeat, the Irishman was among the guests at the US president's second inauguration and also posed for a photograph with Nigel Farage at a pre-event rally. By the time Ireland's prime minister Micheal Martin visited the White House in the week leading up to St Patrick's Day, Trump was publicly singling out McGregor as his favourite Irishman. If that was embarrassing for the taoiseach, it became even more so on St Patrick's Day when McGregor was invited for an audience with Trump and seized a platform to spout anti-immigration rhetoric he had begun to voice in the preceding months and years. That had included in the build-up to a riot in Dublin in November 2023, which was triggered by the stabbing of three young children outside a primary school. McGregor posted on X: 'Innocent children ruthlessly stabbed by a mentally deranged non-national in Dublin, Ireland today. There is grave danger among us in Ireland that should never be here in the first place, and there has been zero action done to support the public in any way, shape or form with this frightening fact. NOT GOOD ENOUGH.' Following the riot, and facing accusations of incitement, McGregor said he did not condone the violence. His White House visit was followed by an announcement that he would run for the presidency of Ireland later this year. But despite previously being publicly endorsed by Elon Musk and claiming to have the support of Trump himself, McGregor faces what would appear insurmountable hurdles to becoming his own country's head of state. Under the current rules, candidates must garner the support of 20 Oireachtas (parliament) members, or the backing of four of Ireland's local authorities in order to stand. A recent Irish Times survey of 949 local councillors found not one of the 187 who responded said they would nominate him for the role. Stiofán Conaty, a Sinn Fein councillor from Cavan County Council, told the publication: 'No such pressure would ever influence me to even consider voting for that horrid man.' McGregor's presidential ambitions could hardly be further removed from his stance on politics a decade ago after he was criticised for wearing a Remembrance Day poppy. 'F--- politics and f--- religion,' he wrote on Twitter in October 2015. 'I just want to swing a few lefts and a few rights for a couple of hundred mill in peace.' Back then, McGregor was at the peak of his powers in the Ultimate Fighting Championship with a five-year, 15-bout winning streak that included becoming the first man to hold championships in two weight classes simultaneously. Arguably the world's most recognisable MMA fighter, he was even named the following year as RTE Sports Person of the Year – Ireland's equivalent of the BBC's Sports Personality of the Year award. By then, McGregor had announced his retirement from UFC amid speculation about who would win in a fight between him and the world's best boxer, Floyd Mayweather Jnr. That planted the seed for a crossover boxing match between the pair on August 26, 2017, which became the second-highest-selling pay-per-view event in history. McGregor was beaten but, in reality, there were no losers from a fight in which he later said he earned 'around' $100 million. He went on to be ranked by Forbes as the world's fourth-highest-paid athlete on $99 million. The Mayweather fight also brought unprecedented public scrutiny on McGregor, who was accused of racism after telling his black opponent to, 'Dance for me, boy', during a promotional event. Mayweather later claimed McGregor had 'called black people monkeys' and had spoken 'disrespectfully to my mother and my daughter'. Responding on Instagram, McGregor wrote: 'Floyd Mayweather, don't ever bring race into my success again. I am an Irishman. My people have been oppressed our entire existence. And still very much are. I understand the feeling of prejudice. It is a feeling that is deep in my blood. In my family's long history of warfare there was a time where just having the name 'McGregor' was punishable by death. Do not ever put me in a bracket like this again …' Following the bout, McGregor looked likely to return to UFC before the end of the year. But plans were scrapped when he pushed a referee and slapped another official at a rival MMA event in Dublin, in which he was not even competing. The next day, the head of the commission for the event issued a statement accusing McGregor of having 'assaulted' the pair. McGregor apologised and UFC president Dana White later blamed his behaviour partly on his rapid rise to fame, branding his entourage 'cling-ons'. 'He's a young, rich kid who is a god in Ireland,' White said. 'That's not the healthiest environment either. When you make that kind of money, you're that famous and you're a professional athlete, you're gonna have an overload of cling-ons.' McGregor's MMA return was still on hold when, in April 2018, he was filmed in New York throwing a metal equipment dolly at the window of a bus carrying his UFC nemesis and heir apparent, Khabib Nurmagomedov. The window shattered, injuring two other fighters. White called the incident 'the most disgusting thing' in the history of the organisation. McGregor turned himself in to police and was charged with assault, criminal mischief and other crimes. He pleaded no contest to a count of disorderly conduct and was ordered to carry out five days of community service and attend anger-management classes. One of his victims, Michael Chiesa, later sued McGregor over his injuries. The case was settled out of court more than four years later. White's condemnation did not prevent him signing a six-fight deal for McGregor to return to the UFC, starting with a bout against new lightweight champion Nurmagomedov in October that year. McGregor was defeated and a brawl broke out afterwards that led to both men receiving lengthy bans and heavy fines. After defeating Conor McGregor, Khabib Nurmagomedov jumped out of the octagon and a brawl ensued 🎥 @AndreasHale d — SB Nation (@SBNation) October 7, 2018 It was during his six-month suspension that McGregor allegedly raped Hand and was arrested over accusations he stamped on a fan's phone in another incident caught on camera. The alleged victim in that case stopped cooperating with police and charges were later dropped. On March 26, McGregor announced his second retirement from MMA, hours before news broke that he was being investigated over his alleged rape of Hand. On April 6 came the Dublin pub attack in which McGregor punched Desmond Keogh for refusing an offer to sample the fighter's 'Proper No. Twelve' brand of whiskey. McGregor pleaded guilty to the assault in November that year and was fined €1,000. He also issued a public apology. However, when it was reported in April 2021 that McGregor had bought the Marble Arch pub where the incident had taken place, he reposted a link to the article saying: 'Ye and your mans barred.' Keogh told the Irish Mirror: 'I wouldn't want to be spending money in his pub to be honest.' That same month, McGregor and his business partners sold Proper No. Twelve for $600 million. The rape investigation and a further – denied – sexual assault allegation failed to prevent McGregor making what was a winning UFC comeback in January 2020. He retired again and, later that year, was arrested on the French island of Corsica on suspicion of attempted sexual assault and indecent exposure. He was released without charge and a police investigation into the denied claims was eventually dropped. Hand filed her civil lawsuit against McGregor in January 2021, days before what proved to be the fighter's final UFC comeback. He lost that bout, to Dustin Poirier, and a rematch in July. By then, Forbes had ranked him as the world's highest-paid athlete on $180 million following the sale of his whiskey brand. In October that year, McGregor was publicly accused by Italian DJ Francesco Facchinetti of breaking his nose in a nightclub in Rome. Facchinetti filed a criminal complaint but, as of today, no known action has been taken over an alleged incident McGregor has yet to comment on. The following July, McGregor held a birthday party on his yacht in Ibiza, after which a woman filed a complaint that he had physically assaulted her and that she had broken her arm jumping off the boat to escape him. McGregor denied the allegation and the woman later withdrew a lawsuit she had lodged against him. After making the allegations, her car was torched outside her home and a brick thrown through her window. During last year's civil rape proceedings against McGregor, it emerged that a gang of masked men had broken into Hand's home, smashed the windows and stabbed her boyfriend in the months leading up to the court case. There is no suggestion McGregor had any involvement in or prior knowledge of these incidents but, with him having 47 million followers on Instagram in addition to 10 million on X, they could indicate his supporters are prepared to go to extreme lengths to silence his accusers. McGregor is now facing another sexual assault lawsuit, filed in Florida in January this year over allegations – which he denies – of attempted rape during the NBA Finals in June 2023. Following a police investigation into the claims, prosecutors confirmed in October that McGregor would face no criminal charges. His alleged victim's lawsuit claims McGregor 'attempted to forcefully place his unprotected penis' into her mouth and anus without her consent. The claim was filed days before Trump's inauguration, but, like the verdict in November's civil case against him, did not prevent him attending or being invited to the White House in March. It has certainly not stopped his relentless campaigning for the presidency of Ireland. So, when footage emerged last week of him punching someone to the floor of Pacha during his latest trip to Ibiza, it hardly came as a surprise that his victim was apparently ejected and he was allowed to carry on as if nothing had happened.
The Guardian
24-06-2025
- The Guardian
Lehrmann seeks to halt Toowoomba rape case and claims police ‘illegally obtained' his lawyers' phone calls
Bruce Lehrmann has sought to halt a rape case against him, claiming that police 'illegally obtained' his lawyers' phone calls. Lehrmann, 30, is accused of raping a woman twice during the morning of 10 October, 2021 after they met at a strip club the previous night in Toowoomba, west of Brisbane. Defence lawyer Zali Burrows filed an application in Toowoomba district court on Monday seeking a permanent stay in Lehrmann's pending trial. In court documents, Burrows sought a 'declaration that intercepted calls between Mr Lehrmann's lawyers and Queensland Police [were] illegally obtained'. Burrows' application was in response to an affidavit by Peter Blake-Segovia, a practice manager at the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions' Toowoomba chambers. The affidavit stated police had possession of four audio recordings of calls between a detective and Lehrmann's previous lawyers. Blake-Segovia stated he had emailed the arresting officer in Lehrmann's case, Det Snr Const Ashlee Ryder, concerning material in the case. 'Can you please confirm whether a copy of anything that is relevant to the proceeding … has been disclosed?' Blake-Segovia emailed on June 17. In the court affidavit, Blake-Segovia stated Det Ryder had 'outlined items that were in her possession that were not provided as part of the brief to the Director of Public Prosecutions'. The items included 'four audio recordings between the arresting officer and [Lehrmann's] previous legal representatives'. 'I will review the contents of the material to ascertain whether they ought to be disclosed,' Blake-Segovia stated to the court. In Queensland it is generally lawful for a person to record a phone conversation without the consent of the other people on the call. However, in New South Wales it is generally illegal to record a phone conversation without consent. The alleged victim previously told Toowoomba magistrates court she consumed cocaine with Lehrmann during a night out before consensual sex at about 4am. The woman said she was woken about 10am by Lehrmann sexually assaulting her. Lehrmann - a former ministerial staffer to Liberal senator Linda Reynolds – has not formally entered a plea but has previously indicated through his former lawyers that he intends to fight the charges. Lehrmann's former defence barrister Andrew Hoare said at a prior hearing the alleged victim was too intoxicated to remember giving consent and Lehrmann could have mistakenly believed he had consent. Burrows on Monday also applied for a declaration that Queensland police did not have the discretion to determine what is relevant to the defence case and must disclose all materials. Blake-Segovia stated to the court that police held items, in addition to the phone call recordings, that had not been disclosed. Those items included two audio recordings and two emails between the alleged victim and Det Ryder, an audio recording of a witness and information about Lehrmann's account on the SnapChat messaging app. The Ipswich district court is due to hear Burrows' application on Wednesday.
Daily Mail
24-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Bruce Lehrmann launches eleventh-hour appeal to halt looming rape trial
has sought to halt a rape case against him, claiming that police 'illegally obtained' his lawyer's phone calls. Lehrmann, 30, is accused of raping a woman twice during the morning of October 10, 2021 after they met at a strip club the previous night in Toowoomba, west of Brisbane. Defence lawyer Zali Burrows filed an application in Toowoomba District Court on Monday seeking a permanent stay in Lehrmann's pending trial. In court documents seen by AAP, Ms Burrows sought a 'declaration that intercepted calls between Mr Lehrmann's lawyers and Queensland Police (were) illegally obtained'. Ms Burrows' application was in response to an affidavit by Peter Blake-Segovia, a practice manager at the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions' Toowoomba chambers. The affidavit stated police had possession of four audio recordings of calls between a detective and Lehrmann's previous lawyers. Mr Blake-Segovia stated he had emailed the arresting officer in Lehrmann's case, Detective Senior Constable Ashlee Ryder, concerning material in the case. 'Can you please confirm whether a copy of anything that is relevant to the proceeding... has been disclosed?' Mr Blake-Segovia emailed on June 17. In the court affidavit, Mr Blake-Segovia stated Det Ryder had 'outlined items that were in her possession that were not provided as part of the brief to the Director of Public Prosecutions'. The items included 'four audio recordings between the arresting officer and (Lehrmann's) previous legal representatives'. 'I will review the contents of the material to ascertain whether they ought to be disclosed,' Mr Blake-Segovia stated to the court. In Queensland, it is generally lawful for a person to record a phone conversation without the consent of the other people on the call. However, Lehrmann - a former ministerial staffer to Liberal senator Linda Reynolds - has ongoing legal matters in NSW and Tasmania, where it is generally illegal to record a phone conversation without consent. The alleged victim previously told Toowoomba Magistrates Court she consumed cocaine with Lehrmann during a night out before consensual sex at about 4am. The woman said she was woken about 10am by Lehrmann sexually assaulting her. Lehrmann's former defence barrister Andrew Hoare said at a prior hearing the alleged victim was too intoxicated to remember giving consent and Lehrmann could have mistakenly believed he had consent. Ms Burrows on Monday also applied for a declaration that Queensland Police did not have the discretion to determine what is relevant to the defence case and must disclose all materials. Mr Blake-Segovia stated to the court that police held items, in addition to the phone call recordings, that had not been disclosed. Those items included two audio recordings and two emails between the alleged victim and Det Ryder, an audio recording of a witness, and information about Lehrmann's account on the Snapchat messaging app. The Ipswich District Court is due to hear Ms Burrows' application on Wednesday.
