Family Mourned After Being Told Loved One Died in Crash. Then They Found Out She Was 'Alive and Well'

"During the course of our initial investigation, the NYPD misidentified the victim of a fatal vehicle collision," police said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE

A family is still reeling after being told that their loved one was killed in a crash, and then learning that wasn't true.

According to WABC-TV, police told Sheila Nagengast that her 44-year-old sister, Denise Owen, died after she was hit by a car on Staten Island on Tuesday, Oct. 31.

"They said, 'I'm sorry to inform you but your sister has been killed fatally in a car accident,’ " added Nagengast, who said her sister experienced homelessness at times and had been diagnosed with schizophrenia.

In a statement obtained by PEOPLE, a spokesperson for the New York Police Department said that "during the course of our initial investigation, the NYPD misidentified the victim of a fatal vehicle collision."

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Nagengast told WABC-TV that family members and friends also heard about the news as word spread.

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Then, as Nagengast was meeting with a lawyer, she said her other sister called to say Owen was alive. "She FaceTimed me, and my sister Denise..is standing directly in front of my (other) sister. Alive and well," Nagengast said.

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Personal injury attorney Jonathan D'Agostino tells PEOPLE that had "police been more diligent in following standard protocol in this matter," the family "would have been spared the infliction of emotional distress."

D'Agostino adds that he is now working with the "actual victim of this accident" but is not at liberty to discuss additional details.

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In a statement obtained by PEOPLE, police said that "upon further investigation, a proper identification and subsequent family notification was made."

They added, "We apologize for the unfortunate grief we may have caused."