Conor McGregor is hoping to add new evidence to his civil rape trial appeal that could blow the entire case wide open.
The evidence that McGregor had raped Nikita Hand at a Dublin hotel in December 2018 was deemed not solid enough by the Director of Public Prosecutions to merit a criminal trial. But following a civil trial at the end of 2024, a jury found McGregor liable for sexual assault and fined him $280,000 in damages and $1,700,000 in legal fees. Now he hopes to clear his name through an appeal.
A big element of McGregor’s guilt revolved around the well-documented and extensive bruising that Hand had all over her body when examined by healthcare workers. During the trial, the Irish sports star’s lawyers had suggested it may have been caused by a medication Hand was on and the result of her jumping into a bathtub.
Now his legal team is looking to introduce testimony from neighbors across the street from Hand who claim they witnessed her partner assaulting her following the incident with McGregor.
“Ms. O’Reilly was alleging that she had seen a row from her bedroom window between Ms. Hand and her former partner on the night of 9 December 2018, into the early hours of 10 December 2018,” Irish news outlet RTE reported. “In her affidavit, Ms. O’Reilly claims she was woken up by screaming and shouting.”
“Ms. O’Reilly described seeing Mr. Redmond push Ms. Hand and Ms. Hand fell to the floor. Ms. O’Reilly said she could not actually see Ms. Hand on the ground but said Mr. Redmond’s movements indicated that he was punching and kicking Ms Hand.”
Hand’s legal team is challenging the move to introduce this evidence, and Hand has filed an affidavit saying the neighbor’s claims are “untrue and are lies.”
A full assessment of the credibility of the new evidence is set to take on July 1st and each sides’ lawyers will have an opportunity to cross-examine witnesses regarding the statements in their affidavits.
