Conor McGregor has claimed he “does not connect crime with migration” but called for a “task force to assess all entrants into Ireland”.
The UFC fighter and publican was responding to comments in the Dáil by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, who urged people to “try and avoid connecting crime with migration”, saying “it’s not right”.
McGregor posted a series of messages before and after serious rioting and looting which following a stabbing in Dublin city centre last week.
He condemned the scenes and posted an image of a lone black male carrying a bundle of clothes.
I do not connect crime with migration. I connect crime to your governments many failed policies in protecting and securing the inhabitants of Ireland. There is a real lapse in national security. We need a brand new task force founded to assess all entrants into Ireland. Our… https://t.co/yTT4JPzobi
— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) November 28, 2023
Gardaí are investigating comments on social media in the lead up to the rioting, during which buses and Garda vehicles were torched and shops looted.
This followed the stabbing of four people, including three children, outside a school on Parnell Square. A five-year-old girl and female staff member remain in hospital.
More than 30 people have been charged following the disturbances.
Garda Commissioner Drew Harris told Dublin City Council’s Joint Policing Committee on Monday his force is investigating suspected incitement to hatred in connection with social media commentary.
On the day after the riot, McGregor described the scenes in the city centre as “despicable”, with “people looting shops amidst the anger and rage Ireland has for the many policies of government”. He went on to condemn government policies.
Read more: Stupidity is the only ideology of these rioting 'patriots' – Mary Kelly
Two posts by McGregor on Elon Musk’s X platform were linked to images of a black male – one a still shot, the other a video.
McGregor commented on the video of the youth – which was posted by a user with the message “Criminal ‘migrants’ taking full advantage of the protests tonight in Dublin” – by saying: “Deplorable! We stand with Irish
businesses!”
In another post saying he did not condone the riots, Mr McGregor made a short statement over a tweet from Paul Golding, leader of the far-right Britain First party. Mr Golding claimed “Ireland would be solidly behind” McGregor if he called a “freedom march”.The ex-BNP councillor was convicted in Northern Ireland for distributing racist material and attached himself to the loyalist flag protests that began in 2012. An agent for the UFC fighter was contacted for comment.Following the day of disturbances and tweets over the weekend, the owner of X, Mr Musk, appeared to endorse the idea of the mixed
martial arts fighter running for office in Ireland, stating it was “not a bad idea”.Mr Musk was accused of inciting hatred in Ireland after claiming Taoiseach Leo Varadkar “hates the Irish people” and that the “Irish government clearly cares more about praise from woke media than their own
people”.
