Conor McGregor must pay woman $250,000 in sexual assault case, civil jury rules

LONDON (AP) – A woman who claimed mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor “brutally raped and beat” her in a Dublin hotel penthouse was awarded nearly 250,000 euros ($257,000) by a civil jury in Ireland on Friday.

The woman said the assault on December 9, 2018, after a night of partying, left her badly bruised and suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

McGregor shook his head as the jury of eight women and four men delivered the verdict after deliberating for around six hours at the High Court in Dublin. He was mobbed by cameras as he left court but did not comment.

McGregor testified that he never forced the woman to do anything against her will and said she made up the allegations after the two had consensual sex.

The woman’s voice and hands were shaking as she read a statement outside the courthouse in which she said she would never forget what happened to her but would now be able to move on with her life. She thanked her family, partner, friends and all the supporters who had reached out to her online, but especially her daughter.

“She has given me so much strength and courage over the past six years through this nightmare to keep pushing forward for justice,” the woman said. “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 done.”

Her lawyer told jurors that McGregor was angry over a fight he had lost in Las Vegas two months earlier and was taking it out on his client.

“He’s not a man, he’s a coward,” attorney John Gordon said in his closing arguments. “A sneaky coward and you should treat him for what he is.”

The woman had to take several breaks in her emotional testimony when she said McGregor threatened to kill her during the meeting.

A paramedic who examined the woman the next day testified that she had not seen anyone with that intensity of bruising.

McGregor choked her several times and later told her, “now you know how I felt in the octagon, where I got knocked out three times,” referring to an Ultimate Fighting Championship when he had to concede defeat, she said.

She feared she would die and never see her daughter again.

“He let me go and I remember saying I was sorry as I felt I did something wrong and I wanted to assure him I wouldn’t tell anyone so he wouldn’t hurt me again,” she said.

She said she then let him do what he wanted and he had sex with her.

Police investigated the woman’s complaint, but prosecutors declined to press charges, saying there was insufficient evidence and a conviction was unlikely.

McGregor said the two had sex that was athletic and energetic, but not hard. He said “she never said ‘no’ or stopped” and testified that everything she said was a lie.

“It’s a complete lie among many lies,” he said when asked about the chokehold claim. “How could anyone think that as a proud person I would highlight my shortcomings.”

McGregor’s lawyer told jurors they had to override their will against the fighter.

“You may have an active dislike for him, some of you may even loathe him – there’s no use pretending the situation could be any different,” said lawyer Remy Farrell. “I’m asking you not to invite him to Sunday brunch.”

The defense said the woman never told investigators McGregor threatened her life. They also showed surveillance video in court that they said appeared to show the woman kissing McGregor’s arm and hugging him after they left the hotel room. Farrell said she looked “happy, happy, happy.”

McGregor said that when he was first questioned by police, he read them a prepared statement. On the advice of his lawyer, he refused to answer more than 100 follow-up questions.