FLORENCE, Italy — An autopsy has determined that an American woman whose naked body was found last week in her Florence apartment was strangled with an object such as a rope or cord, an Italian prosecutor said Tuesday.

Prosecutor Giuseppe Creazzo cautioned that more lab results are needed to pinpoint the time of Ashley Olsen’s death.

The 35-year-old had been living in Florence for about three years. Autopsy findings so far indicate that she died between the morning of Friday and the early afternoon of Saturday. The corpse, with bruises and scratches on the neck, was discovered after her Italian boyfriend expressed alarm he hadn’t heard from her in a few days and asked the landlady to open the apartment door.

Olsen, originally from Summer Haven, Fla., was last seen by friends early Friday at a popular Florence nightclub.

It could be weeks before results of analyses of body tissue and fluid are ready to help experts narrow the time-frame when she was strangled, Creazzo said.

Laboratory results will also help determine whether Olsen had been sexually assaulted, Creazzo said, adding that there were no external signs of sexual attack.

There were reportedly no signs of struggle against whoever killed her.

Creazzo said at this point investigators have no suspects.

Olsen’s father teaches in Florence, and her social circles included the art community in the Tuscan capital, renowned for its Renaissance architecture and masterpiece-rich museums and churches.

Associated Press