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Dominican Republic Resort Where Delaware Woman Says She Was Brutally Beaten Temporarily Closes

A spokesperson with Majestic Resorts confirmed with NBC10 Majestic Elegance resort in Punta Cana is closing on August 15 and plans to reopen on November 7

What to Know

  • The Dominican Republic resort where a Delaware woman says she was brutally beaten has closed temporarily.
  • The Majestic Elegance resort in Punta Cana is closing on August 15 and plans to reopen on November 7, according to a spokesperson.
  • The spokesperson said they plan to address recent concerns. A Delaware woman who claimed she was beaten at the resort recently sued them.

The Dominican Republic resort where a Delaware woman says she was brutally beaten has closed temporarily.

A spokesperson with Majestic Resorts confirmed with NBC10 that the Majestic Elegance resort in Punta Cana is closing on August 15 and plans to reopen on November 7.

A report from Delaware Online, citing a letter apparently sent to travel agencies, stated the resort was closing due to low occupancy. The spokesperson did not confirm this with NBC10, however, and instead stated the resort planned on addressing recent "concerns" though he would not specify what those concerns are.

In May, Tammy Lawrence-Daley, 51, posted on Facebook that she was viciously attacked in January while at the Majestic Elegance resort in Punta Cana. She described being dragged into a maintenance closet by someone wearing a resort uniform, beaten, assaulted, choked and left for dead in a drainage area for eight hours. She said she was then found by the resort’s maintenance staff the next day.

Lawrence-Daley also posted a photo showing herself with severe swelling and bruising on her face, two black eyes nearly swollen shut, cuts to her lips and cheek and a gauze taped to her face.

Lawrence-Daley and her husband, Christopher Daley, accused Dominican authorities of bungling the investigation, going so far as to question the results of a rape kit by saying it was inadequately performed two days after the attack and that it consisted only of an external swab. Lawrence-Daley said she lost consciousness during the attack and does not know whether or not she was sexually assaulted.

In July, Lawrence-Daley announced she filed a lawsuit against the resort, seeking $3 million for justice, accountability and compensation for her “permanent, life-changing injuries.”

After Lawrence-Daley’s allegations, Majestic Elegance maintained that it had “no opinion on the hypothesis of some authorities involved in the investigation," but it also put out a statement that seemingly minimized the extent of Lawrence-Daley's injuries and said the couple went public only after they were denied $2.2 million in compensation. Majestic Elegance said Lawrence-Daley had "bruises on her face and had a broken fingernail..."

The Dominican Republic's Office of the Attorney General said its investigation was hampered by "incongruent" statements on the part of Daley - a claim Daley described as "crazy" - and by the couple's refusal, in the presence of a U.S. Embassy official, to formally press charges.

Lawrence-Daley's claim that the resort refused to at least reimburse her for her stay and medical bills has also been in contention. Majestic Elegance said it both paid for her hospital stay and provided a "complementary extension" at the resort.

The competing narratives have caused some to question Lawrence-Daley's story, with Majestic Elegance criticizing American media outlets and saying that they "have reported on the story considering her accounts as true and definitive, without listening to the authorities' version, or waiting for a final resolution on the case."

Asked directly if the attack was an elaborate scam by Lawrence-Daley and her husband, a member of their legal team replied with an “Absolutely not.” The legal team also called the resort’s handling of the investigation a “disaster.”

No arrests have been made in connection to the incident.

The alleged attack was one of several recent incidents that brought negative publicity to the Dominican Republic. Boston Red Sox legend David Ortiz was shot in the back in Santo Domingo in May while at least eight Americans have died in the Dominican Republic this year.

Tammy Lawrence-Daley
Tammy Lawrence-Daley. See full-sized image here.
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