After mysteriously disappearing over the weekend, 31-year-old Oswaldo Vasquez, Jr., marketing officer at La Inmaculada Credit Union (LICU) of Orange Walk, was found dead, floating in the New River with two of his limbs reportedly torn off.

by Charles Gladden

ORANGE WALK, Wed. Oct. 11, 2023

The body of 31-year-old Oswaldo Vasquez, Jr., marketing officer at La Inmaculada Credit Union (LICU) of Orange Walk, was found floating in the New River behind the BSI factory in Orange Walk today, Wednesday morning, October 11, after he mysteriously disappeared after a night of drinking on Saturday night, October 7.

Initial reports indicated that on the night Vasquez disappeared, he exited a vehicle, in which he was traveling along with his wife and his brother-in-law, at a gas station on the Philip Goldson Highway reportedly because he wanted to exercise, although he was said to be under the influence of alcohol. Reports further suggested that Vasquez began to run along the highway, near the BSI compound, with the vehicle following behind him, and then he reportedly went into nearby bushes and was never seen again by relatives.

The deceased’s mother, Viola Vasquez, told the local media the day before he was found (in Spanish which was translated into English), that she learned of her son’s disappearance through social media. She said that Oswaldo’s wife came to her home and asked for him, but did not tell her what happened the night before.

“She came to my house to ask for my son, and I told her no, and that he’s not here. Only that she asked me, and she got inside the car, and she didn’t say anything else about what happened last night. Then, people began to ask me, but I didn’t know anything until I went on Facebook and saw that he was missing; but I didn’t know anything,” she said.

The details surrounding Vasquez’s mysterious death are conflicting. There have been inconsistencies in a number of accounts of what took place, including those given by his in-laws.

“They are changing the story. The sister says one thing. The mother says one thing. The daughter says something else, and we don’t know what the truth is. The watchman [at ASR] said that he did see the car that came here, and the person came out and left my son here. That’s what I know, but what they say, I don’t know what is true and what is not true, because they change the story every time,” said Viola Vasquez.

She continued by saying that her son did not usually drink, but would often do so when he visited his in-laws.

“Their neighbor told me that every week they drink, and they were drinking on Saturday afternoon, and he says that he saw that Oswaldo was there drinking with all of them. He never goes too far and drinks, but he always looks for his house. What I don’t understand is why his wife is going to bring him here [and put him] in this position when she could take him home,” she said.

At around 10:00 this morning, Vasquez’s mangled and decomposing body was found in the New River with two of his limbs ripped off his body. and it was suggested by Commissioner of Police Chester Williams that the mutilation was likely done by crocodiles living in the area.

Following the discovery, a relative of Vasquez, Sorida Perez, described to local reporters a sequence of events that was considerably different from what was initially reported and what was later related to reporters by Viola Vasquez.

According to this version of events related by Perez, Oswaldo Vasquez’s children were inside the vehicle with him, his wife, and brother-in-law, and Vasquez began to run and encountered an ASR truck, but she doesn’t recall whether he got into the vehicle or went into the bushes.

While all this was occurring, Perez claims that Oswaldo’s wife was trying to get him back into the vehicle, and chose not to follow her husband, as she didn’t want to leave the children alone, so she decided to go home, thinking that he would return home.

Perez mentioned that later her brother-in-law’s wife called her saying that she heard her husband over the phone as if he was arguing with someone, whose voice was recognized to be that of the deceased Vasquez. Then, when they called the phone, an L&R security guard answered and asked them to come for Vasquez; but when they arrived, he wasn’t there, and they were given his wallet and phone.

When they began to question the security guard, he told them that Vasquez pelted him with his wallet and cell phone, then he went to the side of the building, and ended up at the back gate; however, that area was covered with tree limbs and thorns, and, according to Vasquez’s family, it would have been impossible for him to traverse it.

Perez mentioned that her brother-in-law’s wife had recorded the call, submitted it to police, and returned to confront the security guard in the presence of CIB (Crime Investigation Branch), which led to him being detained.

Following the discovery of Vasquez’s body, the Human Resources Administrative Officer at LICU, Susana Castillo, spoke highly of Vasquez and his three years of employment at the financial institution.

“Oswaldo is someone that will truly be missed by his colleagues,” she said. “He is someone that one can consider a jack of all trades. Very smart and intelligent guy. Somebody who will never tell you no. Somebody that is very resourceful, because we were even wondering, if he gets lost somewhere he will find a way to get out because he is someone that knows the tricks of the trade,” she commented.

In addition to detaining the security guard, police are seeking another individual as a person of interest. A post-mortem examination will be done on Vasquez’s body as a part of a police investigation.

Oswaldo Vasquez leaves behind two children.