SANTO DOMINGO, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC — Dominican police are investigating the deaths of an American couple found in a hotel room in a resort area in the eastern Dominican Republic, where they were vacationing.
The Regional Institute of Forensic Sciences said in an initial report that Edward Nathaniel Holmes, 63, and Cynthia Ann Day, 49, of Maryland, appeared to have suffered respiratory failure and fluid in the lungs. But it said further tests would be required to determine more about the cause of death.
The couple arrived at the Bahía Príncipe hotel in La Romana on May 25 and planned to leave May 30, the day they were found after they failed to check out, officials said. Police said several bottles of medicines to treat high blood pressure were found on the scene.
On May 27, the pair shared photos and messages on their Facebook accounts in which they appeared to be enjoying their vacation.
In another case, Dominican police are investigating an attack on a U.S. tourist in Punta Cana that the woman recently made public on social media, detailing a vicious hours-long assault by a man she said was wearing the uniform of an all-inclusive resort.
More than 6 million tourists visit the Dominican Republic each year.