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A WOMAN WHO is taking a damages claim against Conor McGregor has told the High Court she felt “devastated” and “let down” by the Director of Public Prosecutions’ decision not to prosecute him.
Nikita Hand (Ní Laimhín) alleges that McGregor (36) “sexually assaulted her, and in effect, raped her” in a hotel penthouse in Dublin on 9 December 2018, and that a second defendant, James Lawrence, of Rafter’s Road, Drimnagh, “did likewise”, Mr Justice Alexander Owens told the jury yesterday.
Ms Hand (35) told the court today that she made a statement to An Garda Síochána on 5 January 2019 and an investigation subsequently commenced.
Ray Boland SC, for Ms Hand (35), told the court that in 2020 the DPP told Ms Hand that they were not going to prosecute McGregor or Lawrence. He said that Ms Hand sent a letter to the DPP requesting reasons for this decision.
Boland told the court that Ms Hand received a letter from the DPP in June 2020 informing her that a lawyer would consider her request. A subsequent letter was sent in July informing her that they hoped to be able to respond to her soon.
In August 2020, a letter to Ms Hand from the DPP said it had carefully considered all of available evidence, which was considered personally by the director of DPP, and decided that there was not sufficient evidence to prosecute.
The letter said there was a very high standard of proof required in criminal cases and that if the available evidence was not strong enough, there can be no prosecution. It said Hand could request a review of the decision within 28 days.
Boland told the court that in response to this letter, Ms Hand told the DPP that she was “very disappointed and upset” with the content of the letter. She said that mention of the case in newspapers and on social media “has been very upsetting for me and my family”.
She also said “I feel I am being treated differently to other people because one of the suspects is a famous person.”
Boland said that Ms Hand requested a review of the decision. In September 2020, the DPP sent Ms Hand a letter informing her that a review was still being considered and that as soon as it was completed, they would inform her of the outcome.
Boland said that in October 2020, Ms Hand went to solicitor to initiate a civil claim.
He told the court that in November 2020, the DPP informed Ms Hand that a review of the original decision had been carried out and that “after careful consideration”, it found that the decision not to prosecute was correct. It said there was “no reasonable prospect of conviction”.
The DPP assured Ms Hand that the identity of the suspects “had no bearing” on its decision or the outcome of the case, Boland said.
Ms Hand told the court that she felt “absolutely devastated” and “let down” at the DPP’s decision not to prosecute.
This afternoon, Ms Hand told the jury that she cannot remember CCTV footage showing her and the second man after the alleged attack and was “very drunk” at the the time.
CCTV footage from the Beacon hotel in Dublin was played to the jury and showed McGregor, Ms Hand, her friend and co-defendant James Lawrence exiting the hotel at around 6.15pm after the alleged assault on 9 December 2018.
The footage shows McGregor and the plaintiff’s female friend exit in a black BMW saloon, leaving Lawrence and Ms Hand in the car park.
The CCTV footage played to the jury shows Lawrence and Ms Hand return from the car park at 6.18pm with both parties appearing inebriated and barefoot. A sobbing Ms Hand today said she could not remember the footage and that she was “very drunk” at the time.
“I can’t remember any of this,” a shaking and tearful Ms Hand told her counsel Ray Boland SC, commenting on a segment where the plaintiff appears to put her arm around Lawrence’s neck in the lift and kiss him on the cheek.
When viewing the footage, a crying Ms Hand again said she could not watch any more because she could not remember it. The footage of the lift shows the two carrying a drink each and hugging at 7.30pm before going to the elevator again. Ms Hand is carrying a bottle while Lawrence is carrying a glass.
Both then return to the lift with a security man and return again to the lift at 10.17pm. Five minutes later the two are seen crossing the lobby arms interlinked. And both then get into a taxi at the main entrance and depart the hotel. Hand repeated she had no memory of doing so.
Boland asked what Ms Hand’s approach was to having sex while having her period and was told by the plaintiff that she would “never” do so, especially if she had a tampon in.
The trial has heard that a doctor had to remove a tampon from Ms Hand by forceps the day after the alleged assault.
In cross examination, McGregor’s barrister Remy Farrell SC asked Ms Hand, a hair colourist by trade, if she recalled going to a Christmas work party at Airfield in Dublin on the night before the alleged attack. Ms Hand said she remembered that she went there around 7-8pm after work for around three hours before going to the Goat Grill pub.
Ms Hand said she went to the Goat Grill with work colleagues and then back to the hair salon where she worked and that there was drink and cocaine taken on the night.
Ms Hand told Farrell that the salon party started to wind down at around 6-7am, after which only she and her friend stayed on drinking from around 7-8am before contacting McGregor by direct message on Instagram.
McGregor had told Ms Hand by phone call that he would pick up the two women with Hand saying she believed that they were going to another party.
Farrell put it to Hand that she had roughly nine bottles of beer and three Bacardis on the night and then some cocaine before what the plaintiff described as a “moment of madness” that saw her go out again to party with McGregor.
A phone record print out was then presented to the court by Farrell which showed Hand text her then boyfriend: “Hey babe we’re just back in the salon XXX” some time before the plaintiff and her friend got into McGregor’s car when he arrived at the salon at around 10.15am.
At 8.25am, Ms Hand texted her then boyfriend a picture of her and a co-worker at the salon and said that she just wanted to let her then-boyfriend know that “We’re all going out in a while and want to ask you first. Is it ok? XXXX”
Farrell said that Ms Hand had not told her then-boyfriend that she intended to go with her friend to meet McGregor and go on to another party.
Ms Hand told Farrell that she did not want to tell her then-boyfriend the “truth of it – going to a party with Conor” and that it had been a lie. Hand said she did not want to worry her then partner.
The trial continues before Mr Justice Alexander Owens and a jury of eight women and four men.
Additional reporting by Paul Neilan
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