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What started as a fun night out for a Christmas work party, ended six years later inside the High Court in Dublin, with Nikita Hand winning her case against Conor McGregor.
The Dublin woman and the Irish sports star knew each other from growing up in the same area of south-west Dublin and socialising in similar circles.
Throughout the three-week civil case, Mr McGregor and Ms Hand sat feet away from each other inside the small Court 24.
The mother-of-one sat next to her partner, Gary, for each of the 12 days of the case – he often had his arm around her as the court heard details of Mr McGregor’s version of events.
While the mixed martial arts fighter described the mood throughout their time in the penthouse suite as “happy” and “playful” and “full of energy”, Ms Hand spoke of feeling afraid for her life.
At one point as he gave evidence, Mr McGregor leaned into the microphone and said Ms Hand’s character was someone who was “joyed and excited” and “having a good night”.
He recalled the night in detail, telling the court his “story never weaned”.
Mr McGregor said he was shocked when Ms Hand went to gardaí about what had happened in room 715 of the now-closed Beacon Hotel, that he had wanted to take a microphone to the top of the mountains to shout about his version of events.
Ms Hand gave evidence for two-and-a-half days, her voice shaking as she told the jury she had struggled to break free from Mr McGregor, how she had been attacked, and how she thought she would never see her young daughter again.
She tightened her hand around the tissues and at times she was reminded to speak up and into the microphone as her voice became barely audible.
The sharply divergent accounts of what happened on December 9th 2018 were laid out before the jury.
“One side or the other is telling lies,” Justice Alexander Owens told the panel.
The court was packed with members of the public every day of the case, with some people attending almost every day.
On one occasion, Justice Owens ordered those who could not get a seat in the upstairs gallery to leave. He reminded them that courts did not have to accommodate every person who wanted to watch proceedings.
Members of the public squeezed into the public balcony to hear what all parties had to say.
Among those seated in the public gallery was a man with his young son dressed in his school uniform, others had shopping bags, while some took packed lunches – pensioners and teenagers sat side-by-side.
People in the front row of the public balcony could be seen leaning over the edge of the rails to look down at Mr McGregor, who sat directly below them.
Sitting next to Mr McGregor was his father, Tony McGregor, who was in court every day, including during the few hours his son said he could not attend due to an “upset stomach”.
For the most part, Mr McGregor stared straight ahead, sometimes glancing to his left where the jury sat.
On Friday, he was accompanied in court by his partner Dee Devlin, his parents, sister, brother-in-law and niece. His mother rubbed his arm as they waited for the jury to return their verdicts.
John Gordon, senior counsel for Ms Hand, had previously told the jury that they had been subjected to “arrogant, distasteful, dishonest testimony” by the Irish sportsman.
In his closing speech earlier this week, Mr Gordon described Mr McGregor’s alleged behaviour as “savage, coward and devious”.
He said Mr McGregor had colluded with his friend James Lawrence to concoct a story that they had had consensual sex with the hairdresser in the penthouse.
Ireland
Nikita Hand wins civil rape case against Conor McG…
Mr McGregor, who is reported to be worth around £160 million, will now have to pay out more than €248,603.60, not including legal costs.
Speaking outside court, Ms Hand said: “I want to show Freya (Ms Hand’s daughter) 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.”
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help.