Krishna Nanan Maharaj was born on January 26, 1939, in Diamond Village, Victoria County, Trinidad and Tobago. He was of Indo-Trinidadian descent. His parents were Nanan Maharaj and Dolly Nanan Maharaj. Krishna came from a family that was involved in the legal and business fields. He had two notable siblings: Ramesh Maharaj, who served as the Attorney General of Trinidad and Tobago, and Indra Rambachan, who was married to lawyer Roopnarine Rambachan, a National Award winner.

In December 1986, Krishna Nanan Maharaj arranged a meeting in room 1215 of the DuPont Plaza Hotel in Miami. He allegedly intended to confront Derrick Moo Young about money he claimed Moo Young had taken from his relatives in Trinidad. During this meeting, Moo Young arrived with his adult son, Duane Moo Young. It is reported that Maharaj had a gun and fatally shot Derrick during an argument. Afterward, it is claimed that Maharaj took Duane upstairs and also shot him.

In 1987, Maharaj was convicted of both murders in a Florida court and was sentenced to death. He maintained his innocence throughout the trial and after the conviction. Over the years, there were efforts made for retrials and appeals based on claims of new evidence.

In 1997, Maharaj's death sentence was overturned due to legal issues. He was resentenced to life imprisonment in 2002. Multiple appeals for clemency were filed, citing various flaws in the original case. These included concerns about alibi witnesses not being presented during the trial and changes in the testimony of key witnesses against Maharaj.

In 2014, new evidence came to light suggesting that the Medellín Cartel, linked to the infamous drug lord Pablo Escobar, might have been responsible for the murders. A former DEA agent testified that a hitman confessed to him that the cartel was behind the killings of the Moo Youngs. After further hearings and testimonies, the court acknowledged the compelling evidence presented.

Despite these developments and claims of innocence, Maharaj did not achieve freedom before his death. He passed away on August 5, 2024, at the age of 85, while still in prison. His body was later sent to the United Kingdom for burial.