Irish tabloids are alleging Irish sports star Conor McGregor was involved in a Dublin pub fight linked to a Dublin gangland criminal
Irish and British tabloid newspapers are alleging that Irish MMA superstar Conor McGregor was involved up in a bar bust-up in a pub in Crumlin, Dublin, last Sunday night in which he assaulted a close associate of a member of one of the city’s largest and most dangerous drug gangs.
Simply referred to as a “well-known Irish celebrity,” McGregor is alleged to have entered the South Dublin pub The Black Forge and assaulted a young man sitting there. A man in his 50s is said to have intervened before he, too, was punched twice in the face. The elder man is believed to have connections with convicted drug dealer Graham “The Wig” Whelan, 35, a member of the Kinahan gang.
A fourth man is also believed to have been dragged into the bar brawl before the sports star, alleged to be McGregor, was taken out of the pub and driven away.
The incident in the Crumlin pub is not being investigated by Gardaí
An alleged Facebook post from the Conor McGregor incident. Image: Reddit.
As a result of stricter Irish defamation laws, the Irish Independent did not name the well-known Irish celebrity who was involved in the brawl but US MMA publications, in particular, are alleging that the person they describe could have been McGregor. Since the initial rumors began, the Irish Daily Mail has named McGregor, 29, as the person described in the allegations.
McGregor’s latest Instagram post appears to allude to the fact that he had been named by the Irish tabloids as being linked to the Dublin-city brawl. He is shown in a soundless video wearing a black zip-up hoody and appears to widen his eyes for a second. The post is simply captioned with “the celebrity,” possibly a reference to the Irish Independent not naming him but alleging that he was involved with the phrases “well-known Irish celebrity” and “sports star.”
Read more: Is Conor McGregor a bigot? US columnist slams his pre-fight racist tirades
While Gardaí have said they were made aware of the incident on Sunday night, they informed the Irish Independent that no complaint was made and no investigation is underway.
"There is no report on this matter and no complaint from any injured parties, patrons of the pub or the pub itself and no statements were taken," a senior source said.
Read more: Racist? Conor McGregor is a hero
Rumors are rife on social media as posts are made by those who claim to be eye witnesses
An alleged Facebook post after the incident. Image: Reddit.
Following the incident, social media posts have emerged from Snapchat and Facebook, in particular, which allege to be eye-witness accounts of the event. These accounts allege that McGregor, who is a Crumlin native, was in the local pub late Sunday night.
This allegation is just the latest in a string of stories showcasing unfavorable behavior from McGregor following his loss to Floyd Mayweather in August. He first hit the headlines when he was caught on a hot mic repeatedly calling another fighter a homophobic slur, while just a few weeks ago his bad behavior had him in the papers for all the wrong reasons once more as he stormed the cage at an event in Dublin and shoved the referee.
The incident may have involved the Kinahan gang as well as Conor McGregor
An alleged Snapchat from when McGregor is claimed to have been in the Crumlin bar. Image: Reddit.
The infamous Kinahan cartel, which one of the men involved in the fight is suspected to be linked with, is responsible for a number of hit-man style murders in recent years. Although the man in the fight is believed to be innocent of any criminal activity in the gang, he is alleged to be linked to one of its more senior members.
The complicated crime network in Dublin has expanded internationally in recent years, with Irish crime bosses setting up bases in Spain.
In February 2016 David Byrne was gunned down in the Regency Hotel. Byrne was believed to be a local enforcer for Ireland’s alleged chief crime boss, Christy “The Dapper Don” Kinahan.
Read more: Conor McGregor “represents all that’s wrong about society”
Born in south Dublin, Kinahan is said to speak four languages and have two university degrees, both undertaken during prison stints. According to the gardaí (Ireland's police) and Interpol Kinahan has laundered nearly $1.09 bn (€1bn) in the last 15 years from his base on the Costa del Sol in Spain.
The McGregor incident has set social media and other online forums alight. There are many wild and weird rumors, including theories that McGregor is currently hiding in Lanzarote while his father is meeting with the Kinahans to work out a protection deal. There are claims that the gang is seeking $900k for McGregor’s family’s safety. Others counter-protest that the whole melée started because McGregor had stood up for a member of the Kinahan gang a few weeks back and is friendly with several of its members, having grown up in the same area.
There are also those who say that these rumors are rooted in bitterness in the face of McGregor’s success. They claim that classism is the root of the issue and that these allegations are an attempt to bring McGregor down.
What do you reckon? Was McGregor involved or is it another tactic to bring down his ever-rising star? Does it matter if he was involved anyway? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
Comments