A woman who vanished while on vacation in the Dominican Republic has been positively identified as an apparent victim of an accident who died in a hospital there late last week.

Translating from the Dominican newspaper Diario Libre, the New York Post reports that a police spokesperson said that Portia Ravenelle, 32, of Mount Vernon, New York, is the woman who was found unconscious on a seaside road on March 27, and who died in a hospital over a week later on April 4.

An official with the U.S. Department of State confirmed Ravenelle’s death in a statement obtained by the New York Post.

“We offer our sincerest condolences to the family on their loss … We are closely monitoring local authorities’ investigation into the cause of death. We stand ready to provide all appropriate consular assistance. The U.S. Department of State and our embassies and consulates abroad have no greater responsibility than the protection of U.S. citizens overseas.”

As CrimeOnline previously reported, authorities in the Dominican Republic appear to believe Ravenelle and her companion Orlando Moore died in a car wreck on their way to the airport in the early hours of March 27. On March 31, fishermen reportedly found the decomposing remains of a man in the ocean, along with a vehicle that authorities have not yet been able to retrieve. The body is still pending a positive identification, but it reportedly matches a description of the missing tourist.

According to earlier reports, Ravenelle did not have identification on her person when she was found. It remains unclear why authorities did not earlier make the connection between the bodies and the missing couple, as a friend told CNN that she contacted the U.S. Embassy about Moore and Ravenelle on March 31 and was told there were no deaths, arrests, or accidents that may have accounted for their disappearance.

CrimeOnline will continue to update this story as more information becomes available.

[Feature image: Orlando Moore and Portia Ravenelle/Instagram]