51-year old US tourist, Tammy Lawrence-Daley used her Facebook page to tell her story of being brutally attacked when she went out alone at around 10pm to get a snack at the Majestic Elegance resort in northern Punta Cana in January 2019. She was hospitalized for five days for her injuries, as reported. Lawrence was staying at the resort with her husband Christopher and friends.
In the Dominican Republic, nothing had appeared publicly on the attack until Lawrence posted her case four months later on her Facebook page. The story went viral all over the world.
Lawrence suspects an employee of the hotel is responsible because she says her attacker was attired in the hotel uniform. After being beaten by her attacker, she says her assailant dragged her into a dark crawl space. She says she tells her story so that others can be forewarned to the dangers of walking alone at night.
At the time, she did not file a Police complaint. The case is under investigation by Cestur, the tourism police division. Frank Duran of the Police said the information they have does not coincide with the victim’s more recent statements. But he said the investigation is ongoing.
As reported, a US consul agent was present when she made her statements to the Police. The US Embassy issued a report saying they are following the story closely and are working with the local authorities. “The welfare and safety of US citizens abroad are top priorities of the US State Department,” said the US Embassy statement. Nevertheless, the embassy says that “out of respect for the privacy of Mrs. Lawrence-Daley and her family, we have nothing more to say at this time.”
As reported by AP, the Facebook post was published after the failed attempt by the victim to secure an agreement with the insurance company of the hotel out of the courts. Lawrence reportedly acted after the insurance company sent notified her that Majestic Elegance did not have any responsibility in the case because the aggressor could not be identified as an employee of the hotel.
The hotel has yet to issue a public statement on the case.
Read more:
Diario Libre
Fox News
Listin Diario
Diario Libre
Your Tango
CT Post
DR1 Forums
El Dia
3 June 2019