MMA Fighter Conor McGregor Found Liable in Rape and Sexual Assault Case, Jury Rules

• Conor McGregor was found liable in connection with a 2018 sexual assault in Dublin, Ireland on Friday
• The MMA fighter has been ordered to pay the victim nearly €250,000
• McGregor said he is appealing the decision in a post on X after the trial

MMA fighter Conor McGregor was found liable in a civil rape and sexual assault case in an Ireland court on Friday, according to multiple reports.

The 36-year-old athlete was accused in a civil suit brought forward in 2021 of “brutally” raping and battering a woman named Nikita Hand while she was intoxicated in Dec. 2018, after she invited McGregor to join her and a friend at a company holiday party in Dublin.

A civil jury determined that McGregor was liable of sexually assaulting Hand, and has been ordered to pay damages to her totaling nearly €250,000, which converts into roughly $257,000 in U.S. dollars, according to the Associated Press and the Guardian.

Lawyers for Hand claimed that the woman was left with bruises and post-traumatic stress disorder after the assault. She also accused a friend of McGregor’s, James Lawrence, of assaulting her on the night in question, found Lawrence did not assault her, according to the Guardian.

Following the verdict, McGregor ducked reporters and declined to comment while leaving the courthouse.

Hand, meanwhile, spoke to reporters outside of the Dublin courthouse, telling them she was “overwhelmed” by the support she’s received through the process, per the Guardian’s report.

“To all the victims of sexual assault, I hope my story is a reminder that no matter how afraid you might be, speak up, you have a voice and keep on fighting for justice,” Hand told media after the trial.

Hand also thanked her daughter on Friday. According to the AP, Hand said her daughter gave her “so much strength and courage over the last six years throughout this nightmare.”

“I want to show [her] and every other girl and boy that you can stand up for yourself if something happens to you, no matter who the person is, and justice will be served,” Hand added.

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McGregor spoke out in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) after leaving the courthouse, saying he’s “disappointed” and planning to appeal the decision.

“I will be appealing today’s decision,” McGregor wrote. “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.”

PEOPLE has reached out to a representative for McGregor for comment.

Chief Executive of Dublin’s Rape Crisis Centre, Rachel Morrogh, issued a statement to the Irish Mirror following the trial, calling the verdict “very positive” and a “mark of belief in survivors around the country” on Friday.

“In the face of great adversity, Nikita Hand held strong to her belief that the truth must be told and acknowledged in court,” Morrogh said in the statement. “Today’s verdict will be met with relief by many survivors of sexual violence watching and listening closely to the narrative inside and outside the courtroom.”

McGregor has faced multiple accusations of sexual assault in addition to the allegations by Hand. In 2022, a woman claimed in a lawsuit McGregor punched and threatened to drown her while they were celebrating his birthday on the boat in Ibiza. He has denied the accusations, and the case is still ongoing.

McGregor was accused of sexual assault again in 2023 when a woman claimed that she was “violently” forced into oral sex in a bathroom at the Kaseya Center in Miami after Game 4 of the NBA Finals. Prosecutors, however, said they would not pursue the case due to “insufficient evidence,” ESPN reported.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.