A man and a woman have been charged with perjury following the failed appeal from Conor McGregor against a civil court jury's ruling that he had raped Nikita Hand.
The couple in question, Samantha O'Reilly, and Steven Cummins were arrested following an investigation into McGregor's failed appeal, and have been charged with giving false statements in a judicial proceeding, which they also knew to be false.
In court, Detective Sergeant Maria Cassells said that Ms O'Reilly was arrested at the couple's home in Cherry Orchard Green in Dublin yesterday morning, and charged on two counts of providing false statements in January and May last year.
Detective Garda Padraic Hanley revealed that Mr Cummins, was also arrested at the same time, charged on one count of giving a false statement in January last year.
Neither of them made any reply to the charges. They were both remanded on bail on the condition that they sign on weekly at Ballyfermot Garda Station, provide a mobile phone number, and also do not interfere with witnesses involved in the case.
The Director for Public Prosecutions were instructed by Judge Michele Finan that the couple be tried before a jury in the Circuit Criminal Court.
They will return before the district court in Dublin on November 9 for service of the book of evidence.
The couple were initially arrested last September, after the Court of Appeal referred documentation in Mr McGgegor's case to the DPP.
The MMA fighter had appealed against the High Court's ruling that in a civil case taken by Nikita Hand that he had raped her in a Dublin hotel in December 2018. In his appeal, he mentioned new evidence from Ms O'Reilly and Mr Cummins, before unexpectedly withdrawing the application to introduce this evidence prior to the hearing being due to start.
The couple had sworn affadavits for this appeal, claiming they had lived opposite Ms Hand and her then partner at the time of the assault by Mr McGregor. Ms O'Reilly had claimed that she had seen Ms Hand's then partner moving his body in a way which indicated that he was kicking and hitting her.
Mr Cummins claimed that he was awoken from his sleep by Ms O'Reilly and their daughter, and that he had heard screaming and shouting from Ms Hand's home across the road.
This was the evidence which Conor McGregor had intended to introduce in his appeal, as an alternative explanation for the bruising on Ms Hand's body.
Ms Hand's legal team asked the Appeal Court to refer this matter to the DPP after Mr McGregor's lawyers confirmed they would not introduce the evidence.
After the appeal, led by the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation was set up, Mr McGregor's appeal was rejected in full, with the court saying that there was no plausible reason was provided by him, explaining why "these extremely important and contentious parts of his appeal had been cast aside".
The Supreme Court also said that Mr McGregor had not raised any matter of general public importance, and they were not satisfied that a further appeal should be allowed, in the interests of justice. (Quotes according to RTÉ).
