Conor McGregor intends to appeal civil rape verdict as large crowds take to the streets to support woman involved

CNN
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MMA fighter Conor McGregorwho lost a civil rape case on Friday, said he would instruct his legal team to appeal the verdict as large crowds in Dublin showed support for the woman involved in the case.

McGregor was accused of raping Nikita Hand in a Dublin hotel room in 2018. According to the Irish Courts Service, a civil court jury awarded Hand almost €250,000 (about $263,600) after finding McGregor responsible for the assault.

On Monday, he addressed the incident and the verdict in a further post Xformerly known as Twitter: “I have instructed my legal team to appeal this decision.”

According to Related pressHand testified during the trial that the attack, which occurred after a night of partying, left her bruised and suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

Addressing the media after Friday’s verdict, she described the trial as a “nightmare” and the attack as something “I will never forget for the rest of my life.”

“I want to show (my daughter) Freya and every other girl and boy that you can stand up for yourself if something happens to you, no matter who that person is, and justice will be served,” she added.

“I hope my story will remind all survivors of sexual violence that no matter how afraid you are, speak up, have a voice and keep fighting for justice.”

According to the AP, McGregor maintained during the trial that he never forced Hand to do anything against her will and said she fabricated the allegations after the two had consensual sexual intercourse.

“While I deeply regret it, everything that happened that night was consensual and all witnesses present swore to it under oath,” McGregor wrote on X Monday.

Contacted by CNN, the Courts of Ireland Service confirmed the decision but said no written judgment was available in the civil case.

Large crowds gathered in Dublin on Monday to show solidarity with Hand and criticize the decision by Ireland’s Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) not to pursue criminal proceedings against McGregor.

According to the AP, police investigated Hand’s complaint, but prosecutors declined to file charges, saying there was insufficient evidence and a conviction was unlikely.

Fingal County Councilor posts photos from the protest Ruth Coppinger wrote in X: “Huge questions about DPP dismissing #genderviolence cases. Nikita Hand was under the influence of alcohol and could not consent, she had extensive injuries. Why can’t our legal system help survivors?”

A spokeswoman for the DPP told CNN that in Ireland, reasons for not prosecuting a criminal case are generally not made available to the media or the public.