A couple who provided sworn statements supporting Conor McGregor’s failed appeal against a civil verdict have been charged with perjury in Ireland.
According to sources, 38-year-old Samantha O’Reilly and 39-year-old Steven Cummins appeared before Dublin District Court on September 29, 2026. The two faced charges that they gave false testimony they knew to be false in a judicial proceeding.
O’Reilly faces two counts relating to statements allegedly made in January and May 2025, while Cummins faces one count concerning an alleged January 2025 statement.
Neither defendant entered a plea during the hearing before Judge Michele Finan. Ireland’s Director of Public Prosecutions has directed that both cases proceed to the Circuit Criminal Court for jury trials. A conviction on the alleged offense carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
The charges arose from evidence McGregor attempted to introduce during his appeal of a 2024 civil judgment. A High Court jury had found that the UFC star seriously SA-ed Nikita Hand at the Beacon Hotel in December 2018, awarding Hand €248,603 in damages.
During the appeal process, McGregor sought permission to introduce affidavits from O’Reilly and Cummins, who said they had lived opposite Hand and her then-partner at the relevant time. According to court documents, O’Reilly allegedly claimed she saw Hand’s former partner “moving his body in a way that suggested he was kicking and hitting her.”
Cummins allegedly stated he was woken by O’Reilly and their daughter and heard “screams and shouting” coming from Hand’s house.
McGregor’s legal team argued these accounts could provide an alternative explanation for bruising documented on Hand’s body. McGregor maintained throughout both trials that his encounter with Hand was consensual.
Hand denied that her former partner had assaulted her and described the allegations in the affidavits as “lies.”
In a development that drew scrutiny from the Court of Appeal, McGregor withdrew his application to introduce the evidence shortly before the hearing began in July 2025. The court later stated that no plausible reason had been advanced for why “these extremely important and contentious parts of his appeal had been cast aside.”
Following concerns raised by Hand’s lawyers, the Court of Appeal referred documentation to the Director of Public Prosecutions over possible perjury. O’Reilly and Cummins were arrested in September 2025 as part of the resulting investigation conducted by the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation.
Detective Sergeant Maria Cassells told the court O’Reilly was arrested that morning at the couple’s home in Cherry Orchard Green, Dublin. Detective Garda Padraic Hanley told the court Cummins was also arrested at home that morning. Neither defendant replied to the charges when they were put to them.
McGregor subsequently lost his appeal in full.
Ireland’s Supreme Court declined to hear a further challenge in December 2025, finding that McGregor had not raised a matter of general public importance and was not satisfied that a further appeal should be permitted in the interests of justice.
Both O’Reilly and Cummins were granted bail with conditions. They must sign on weekly at Ballyfermot Garda Station, provide a mobile phone number, and not interfere with witnesses. They are due back in District Court on November 9, 2026, when the book of evidence will be served before the cases are sent forward for trial.
Both defendants intend to apply for legal aid. Their solicitor is Tony Collier.
In her first public interview since the verdict, Hand spoke about the continued toll of McGregor’s public presence. She addressed his return to the UFC over the summer and an appearance on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.
“No, I didn’t watch it. No, I wouldn’t be able to watch that. But I heard about it. There’s no way for me getting away from any of it. Like if he’s given a platform, something huge like that to be on a TV show, it’s in my face. And it was difficult for me to see that. It felt like we were going backwards instead of forwards,” Hand said.
She described having to isolate herself to escape reminders of McGregor’s media rehabilitation.
“For me to kind of get away from that for a few days, I need to kind of switch off my phone. I can’t go on to social media. Even if I walk into a local shop, it’s in the newspaper. So it’s nearly kind of like staying at home, and I shouldn’t have to live like that.”
Hand confirmed she has received no apology from McGregor and said she has no interest in one. “No, I don’t forgive him. I don’t feel like I have to say anything to him. I don’t think we need to have a conversation. I gave my evidence, he gave his, and the jury made a decision.”
