Australian model and swimwear designer Sahara Ray, who made headlines over link-up rumours with Justin Bieber, has sadly passed away at the age of 34.According to TMZ, her family confirmed the news in a statement that read, “She passed away last night surrounded by family at the hospital. She was so loved.”The cause of her death has not been made public.Ray rose to prominence through her modelling career and social media presence, amassing a substantial following on Instagram. She also launched her own swimwear label, Sahara Ray Swim, establishing herself as an entrepreneur in the fashion industry.She grabbed headlines in 2016 when photographs of her holidaying with Bieber in Hawaii surfaced. She was also previously romantically linked to Australian singer Cody Simpson.Ray was the daughter of legendary Australian surfer Tony Ray. She spent much of her childhood travelling between Australia, California and Hawaii.In April 2024, Ray opened up about her battle with the autoimmune disease Guillain-Barré syndrome, which left her partially paralysed and briefly wheelchair-bound, after being hit by a car. “Right now I’m paralyzed from the tops of my upper thighs all the way down to my feet. I can’t walk at all,” she said in a TikTok video shortly after the car crash, per 7news.com.According to Mayo Clinic, Guillain-Barré syndrome “is a condition in which the body’s immune system attacks the nerves,” with symptoms that “cause weakness, numbness or paralysis.” It can be activated by acute trauma such as a car crash.The news of her tragic demise comes months after she gave birth to her daughter, Snow, in January. She took to Instagram to announce her baby’s arrival. “Wish me luck. I get induced today at 8 p.m. So excited, so nervous,” she said before going on to officially introduce her newborn in April.“Baby Snow hallelujah,” she captioned the post.