A 49-year-old executive at a “high-profile financial institution” filed a civil complaint Tuesday accusing former UFC star Connor McGregor of sexually assaulting her in a bathroom at the Kaseya Center during the 2023 NBA Finals in Miami.
The woman, who wishes to remain anonymous to “avoid embarrassment and shame,” has already reported her allegations to police, and prosecutors have not filed charges against the UFC fighter. In a statement to HuffPost, his attorney, James Dunn, said the prosecutor’s office’s decision not to pursue criminal charges left a civil action as the only path to justice.
“My client has thought long and hard about the decision to pursue this civil action and fears the effects it could have on her work on Wall Street,” Dunn said, adding that her main goal in filing the lawsuit was to raise awareness. public opinion. and encourage others to report sexual assault.
A lawyer for McGregor told HuffPost on Wednesday that the allegations were false.
“After a thorough investigation at the time, the State Attorney concluded that there was no case to prosecute,” Barbara Llanes said. “Nearly two years and at least three lawyers later, the plaintiff has a new false story. We are confident that this case will also be dismissed.
Mike Ehrmann via Getty Images
The woman’s lawsuit also mentions the Miami Heat and the Kaseya Center, alleging that on June 9, 2023, stadium staff failed to prevent McGregor from consuming alcohol while he was visibly intoxicated. drunkenness. The Kaseya Center did not immediately respond to HuffPost when contacted for comment.
The lawsuit also noted that immediately before the alleged sexual assault, McGregor seriously injured the Miami Heat mascot in a skit gone wrong. Despite knowing the mascot had been taken to the hospital, Kaseya center escorted McGregor to the club grounds near the woman, putting him at “an increased risk of assault and battery,” according to the trial.
The woman was at the game with an acquaintance and she struck up a conversation with McGregor, according to the lawsuit. When his acquaintance told him they were planning to leave, McGregor’s “private security or friend” allegedly told the woman that “Conor told me to come get you” and grabbed her by the wrist.
The two women were then led toward the exit of the club bordering the grounds, but were arrested outside the entrance to the men’s restroom, according to the lawsuit. She told the man holding her wrist to let go, but he replied, “No, Conor will kill me if I lose you,” the lawsuit states.
McGregor then led her to a booth where he sexually assaulted her, according to the lawsuit. The acquaintance was outside the restroom at the time and the lawsuit said loud music coming from a DJ made communication difficult.
Dunn said she then managed to leave the arena without creating a scene shortly after midnight and then turned herself in to police the next day.
“She was a regular at the Courtside club and did not want to be embarrassed or draw attention to herself that night or any other night,” Dunn said.
The new trial comes just months after McGregor was ordered to pay €250,000 to a woman who accused him of raping her in a Dublin hotel in 2018. McGregor claimed his accuser fabricated the allegations and that the two had consensual sex, but she said the incident was left aside. she was badly bruised and suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
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Need help? Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center website.
