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GRAN CANARIA, SPAIN – An Irish Mixed Martial Arts fighter is facing criminal charges in Spain after a chaotic scene erupted on a plane earlier this week. Sinead Kavanagh, a 39-year-old featherweight fighter known for her connection to Conor McGregor, was arrested Monday evening. Authorities say she attacked two Civil Guard officers who boarded a Ryanair flight to deal with a disturbance.
The incident occurred as the aircraft prepared to depart from Gran Canaria for Dublin around 7:30 p.m. Flight crew members reportedly struggled to control Kavanagh due to her "violent attitude" and the pilot eventually requested police assistance to remove her from the cabin.
Chaos in the Aisle
Local reports indicate that the situation turned physical the moment law enforcement stepped onto the plane. When the officers attempted to escort her off, Kavanagh allegedly resisted aggressively.
Video footage published by the local newspaper Atlantico Hoy captured the struggle in the aisle. A woman can be heard shouting in English while grappling with two officers who were trying to restrain her. One of the uniformed Civil Guard agents appeared to be a female officer.
The physical altercation left both officers with injuries. Spanish media outlet Canarias 7 reported that the fighter hit the officers multiple times. The injuries were severe enough that both agents are currently off sick and unable to work.
Legal Consequences
Backup was called to the scene, and four officers eventually placed Kavanagh into a patrol car. She spent the night in an airport holding cell before facing a judge on Tuesday. Following a closed court hearing, she was released on bail pending an ongoing criminal investigation.
Ryanair released a statement confirming the incident and emphasized their strict zero-tolerance policy towards passenger misconduct. A spokesperson stated that two passengers were offloaded before the flight continued to Dublin to ensure a safe environment for the remaining travelers.
Kavanagh hails from the Dublin suburb of Inchicore. Before her MMA career, she was a five-time national boxing champion and competed on the Irish team alongside Katie Taylor.
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