On June 7, 1988, Edsel Striden and Carmen Torres, both local business owners on St. Croix, were found dead of cyanide poisoning after leaving home together in their pickup truck. Edsel was discovered dead in his truck on a nearby beach; Carmen was found near death less than half a mile from where another victim, Radha Maharaj, had been located earlier that year. Both victims’ clothing was soaked with seawater, and a recent $54,000 loan the couple had taken to expand their neighborhood bar was missing. Reports say Edsel was seen carrying a small bottle the evening they left.

These deaths were part of a string of cyanide poisonings on St. Croix from 1984 to 1988 attributed to an unidentified individual called the Obia Man. Victims were reportedly business owners with financial trouble who were persuaded to drink a potion during rituals promised to bring prosperity or protection; the potion proved to contain cyanide. Substantial sums withdrawn or borrowed before several victims’ deaths were later reported missing. No arrests have been announced and the cases remain open.

Did anyone in the community know Edsel or Carmen, their bar, or the man who offered spiritual remedies around that time?