Hotel responds to woman who says she was attacked during Dominican Republic vacation

WILMINGTON, Del. — Update 10:39 a.m. EDT June 6: Officials with the hotel where a Delaware woman said she was attacked by someone wearing a resort uniform have spoken out.

Officials with the Majestic Elegance Punta Cana Hotel said in a statement that Tammy Lawrence-Daley said she demanded the hotel pay $2.2 million or she would go public with what she said happened on the property.

The hotel disputes Lawrence-Daley's account of her injuries, saying she had bruises on her face and a broken nail, NBC News reported.

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The hotel said an ambulance was called for Lawrence-Daley after the alleged attack:  “She had no scratches or other signs of violence on her body and still had her purse and cell phone with her, after which the local police were informed and soon arrived at the scene.”

The hotel paid for her medical expenses, multiple media outlets reported.

The hotel posted its response to the woman's claims on Twitter.

Officials said she returned to the hotel after being released from the hospital, where she met with a representative from the United States embassy. The hotel said she did not legally accuse the hotel at that time, "despite the recommendations of the local authorities."

Lawrence-Daley testified in court before she flew back to the United States and a three-month investigation was conducted, CBS News reported.

Both sides also apparently tried to settle out of court, but the hotel's insurance company found Lawrence-Daley couldn't positively say the alleged attacker worked for the hotel, despite her saying the man wore a hotel uniform, so the hotel had no responsibility for the attack, CBS News reported.

Lawrence-Daley now has until next month to have a lawyer in the Dominican Republic to take her case, CBS News reported.

Hotel officials said they are cooperating with local authorities as the case is investigated.

Original report: A vacation at a resort in the Dominican Republic turned into a nightmare and a fight for her life for a Delaware woman.

She’s now sharing her story as a warning for others planning to travel to the island.

Tammy Lawrence-Daley was on vacation in January with her husband and friends at Majestic Elegance Resort in Punta Cana, KYW reported.

On the second night of the getaway, she said  went to buy a snack on property when she was approached by a man who strangled and beat her, WPVI reported. She said he wore a resort maintenance hat and shirt, KYW reported.

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She was missing for eight hours, and she said she kept losing consciousness.

"He put something around my throat and proceeded to strangle me unconscious. But before I went out, I'll never forget that last breath I took because it had some water in it and I just remember I'm never going to see my kids again. I'm never going to see my husband again and they're never going to find me here," Lawrence-Daley told KYW.

Lawrence-Daley's husband Chris and their friends looked for her when she had not returned, and according to the woman's now-viral Facebook post, tried to get help from the resort's staff in their search. But staff, according to the couple, thought she was intoxicated and wandered off, The Washington Post reported.

When she came to, she was in a crawl space underground that had rocks and wastewater. Hotel staff heard her screaming for help the morning after the attack and found her, KYW reported.

Lawrence-Daley told KYW she had a broken nose, fractured eye socket, nerve damage and a cut to the mouth so bad that her mouth had to be sewn together.

She's had to undergo six surgeries and other procedures to repair the damage from the attack, WPVI reported.

Dominican police investigated but the family says it was inadequate, WPVI reported.

The resort, Majestic Elegance Punta Cana, was contacted by multiple media outlets and either did not respond to requests for comment, or in the case of NBC News, declined to comment.

Police have also not commented, according to The Washington Post.

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