Lawyer for Conor McGregor's accuser hits back at UFC star's denial

‘The video shows my client was sexually assaulted in the bathroom’: Lawyer for Conor McGregor’s accuser hits back at UFC star’s denial

• Ariel Mitchell is representing an unnamed woman – who has accused MMA fighter Conor McGregor of sexual assault after an incident in Miami June 11
• The woman reported the incident to police and McGregor’s attorneys – as video of the MMA fighter leading the sexual assault accuser into a bathroom emerged
• Mitchell says they will be ‘pursuing every legal avenue available’ and that her ‘client will not be intimidated, shamed or bullied’

The lawyer of a woman who has accused MMA fighter Conor McGregor of sexual assault has slammed his response to the allegations stating her client won’t be ‘intimidated, shamed or bullied.’

McGregor, who is expecting his fourth child with his fiancée, has vehemently denied the accusations that he forced the woman to perform oral sex on him and that he attempted to sodomize her. 

Video footage which surfaced following the incident shows McGregor leading the woman, whose identity has been withheld, into a bathroom cubicle – footage Ariel Mitchell, her lawyer, says ‘shows what her client said, that she was sexually assaulted by Conor McGregor in the bathroom.’

McGregor’s attorneys said the footage undermines the woman’s original allegation that he and his security guards forced her into the restroom adding that McGregor ‘welcomes the investigation, which he firmly believes will show the claims against him are false.’

Conor McGregor has vehemently denied accusations that he forced a woman to perform oral sex on him and claims that he attempted to sodomize her

Ariel Mitchell, the lawyer of a woman who has accused MMA fighter Conor McGregor of sexual assault, has slammed his response to the allegations stating her client won’t be ‘intimidated, shamed or bullied’

Mitchell said that their response is no surprise and a ‘standard statement that almost every abuser makes when responding to these types of allegations.’

Video emerged in the wake of the accusations of the moment McGregor led his sexual assault accuser into the bathroom at the NBA Finals in Miami last week.

It shows his entourage of security guarding the door while the pair go inside and close the door behind them.

In a statement on Friday, a spokesman for Miami Police Department told DailyMail.com: ‘MPD’s Special Victims Unit is investigating a report that was filed Sunday, June 11, 2023. 

‘This is an open investigation so no additional information can be released at this time.’

The footage shows McGregor emerging from the bathroom then approaching the woman, taking her by the hand, and walking back towards the bathroom.

She follows him and they disappear behind the door. 

McGregor’s entourage of security guards is then shown blocking the entrance to the door. 

His attorneys say the footage undermines the woman’s original allegation that he and his security guards forced her into the restroom. 

‘The claimant’s lawyer now has changed her story. Mr. McGregor welcomes the investigation, which he firmly believes will show the claims against him are false. 

McGregor and his fiancée Dee Devlin alongside their three children; Conor Jr, Croia and Rian. He announced earlier this week that they are expecting their fourth child together 

He is shown approaching the woman who says he sexually assaulted her and asking her to follow him to the bathroom, which she does 

‘After not responding to the demand for money made by claimant’s counsel, she turned to the media to apply pressure. 

‘This is no more than a shakedown,’ McGregor’s attorney, Barbara R. Llanes, said, in a statement. 

The accuser’s attorney originally said he had ‘forced’ her into the bathroom, with the help of his security.

‘What the video shows is what my client said that she was sexually assaulted by Connor McGregor in the bathroom of the Kaseya center after game four of the NBA finals,’ said Mitchell. 

‘Why aren’t the questions being asked why was Mr. McGregor taking a woman who was not his pregnant fiancé into a bathroom? Why isn’t the question being asked Why did the heat security allow Mr. McGregor to take any female into the men’s bathroom?’

Mitchell went on to say that the response to the allegations is ‘why victims do not report these types of crimes.’

‘They are picked apart and looked at as liars and discouraged from reporting these types of crimes,’ she said. 

‘My client will not be intimidated, shamed or bullied and is moving forward with the police in her pursuit of justice. We will be pursuing every legal avenue available.’

In early 2019, reports emerged that McGregor was under investigation by Irish law enforcement for an alleged sexual assault of a woman in a Dublin hotel the previous December. 

McGregor is shown taking the woman, whose face has been obscured, by the hand and leading her towards the bathroom

Once McGregor and the woman were inside the bathroom, some of his entourage followed them in, while some remained outside, guarding the door

In October 2019, police received another complaint against McGregor from a woman who said he had sexually assaulted her in a car outside a Dublin pub. 

The UFC fighter denied both claims, but was at one point arrested and questioned before being released.

In 2021, prosecutors indicated they would not be charging McGregor in connection with the alleged 2018 assault – neither have they pursued legal action over the 2019 complaint. 

The woman whose accusations sparked the initial investigation sued McGregor for personal injuries after the criminal case ended without charges, again alleging that he raped her in a Dublin hotel. 

Those civil proceedings are ongoing, while the plaintiff granted wide discovery of materials the police obtained in working on the case. McGregor continues to deny the accusation.

In September 2020, McGregor was detained and questioned by authorities on the French island of Corsica in September 2020 for alleged indecent exposure and sexual assault in a bar, spending two days in custody. 

Eight months later, they declared a lack of sufficient evidence to justify a criminal prosecution. The investigation is said to have included DNA collection that corroborated his version of events.

DailyMail.com obtained a photo of the woman’s outfit bagged up which she gave to the police

McGregor was in Miami for Game 4 of Miami Heat’s NBA finals against the Denver Nuggets

‘Conor McGregor vigorously denies any accusations of misconduct,’ his representative told TMZ at the time. ‘He has been interviewed and released.’

A source close to McGregor said they will cooperate fully with the investigation into the latest allegation – insisting that the woman’s claims are false and that she is only interested in money. 

Mitchell referred to previous allegations, but did not specify which ones, adding that her client had tried to contact police in the first instance.  

‘This isn’t the first time Mr. McGregor has made this statement when being accused of this type of crime,’ she said.

‘My client went to the police first she was not trying to see anything more than justice.

‘We would not have been in this predicament if the police would’ve just taken her report, as she intended to report it on Sunday, instead of trying to persuade her otherwise into hiring an attorney.’

Referring to his denial, Mitchell added: ‘The statement that would surprise me is if anyone would actually take accountability.’

After the release of the video, Mitchell issued an updated statement saying her client had thought she was being led out of the venue to go to the Four Seasons, where he was staying. 

‘My client was under the belief they were leaving and going to the Four Seasons Hotel, as McGregor had previously asked her to join him at his hotel room.’ 

The woman’s attorney sent this letter to McGregor this week detailing the alleged incident. He denies the allegations

She maintains that someone approached her and told her ‘Conor told me to come get you.’ 

As she was walking out of the venue, she says McGregor took her by the hand into the restroom. 

‘My client believed they were leaving, but instead McGregor took her into the restroom,’ said Mitchell.

Originally, she said in her letter: ‘Mr. McGregor, aided and abetted by the NBA and Miami Heat Kaseya security, had the victim physically forced via security into the men’s bathroom, separating her from her friend and trapping her inside with Mr. McGregor and his security guard.’

It went on to claim that he ‘trapped’ her in there – then forced himself on her. 

‘Mr. McGregor then appeared from inside the handicapped stall and shoved his tongue in the victim’s mouth and aggressively kissed her,’ according to the legal letter. 

The woman’s attorney says she then told him she needed to use the bathroom. 

While she was in the stall, the woman says McGregor ‘pulled out his penis and shoved it down the throat of the victim’. 

She claims she was able to get him off her, but says he then spat on her and on himself ‘in a desperate attempt to get his flaccid penis hard.’ 

She then tried to flee, but says McGregor ‘aggressively grabbed her, pinned her up against the wall’ and tried to anally rape her. 

‘Fortunately, Mr. McGregor’s penis was too limp for complete penetration, and the victim continuously elbowed Mr. McGregor and finally escaped,’ the letter went on. 

McGregor is shown in New York City on Wednesday after confirming his fiancée’s fourth pregnancy. He has gone to ground since the sexual assault allegation 

Both the Miami Heat and UFC issued statements in the wake of the incident. 

The Heat said: ‘We are aware of the allegations and are conducting a full investigation. Pending the outcome of the investigation, we will withhold further comment.’ 

UFC’s statement read: ‘The organization is aware of the recent allegations regarding Conor McGregor and will continue to gather additional details regarding the incident. 

‘UFC will allow the legal process to play out before making any additional statements.’

Source: Read Full Article