Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office, inspired by the developments of new forensics technologies, has reopened the 21-year-old homicide case of a former Prince George’s County man.
On Sept. 30, 1988, 28-year-old Henry “Ricky” Ryan went to party on the banks of the Shenandoah River in an area where his friends swam, did drugs and drank beer. Ryan, a sheet metal worker who had graduated from Beltsville’s High Point High School in 1978, had recently returned from his second stint at a drug and alcohol treatment program. That night Ryan went on a beer run but never returned.
The family searched in vain and the hunt dragged on for months. Then on March 14, 1989, a passer-by happened upon Ryan’s body in a shallow grave about 100 yards off Route 9 in western Loudoun County near the West Virginia line. A black leather jacket sat next to him. Police identified Ryan by his four tattoos.
For more than two decades Ryan’s case languished. But last year, after investigators attended a cold-case forum in Annapolis and learned of new scientific discoveries in DNA forensics work, deputies decided to re-evaluate his case, Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Kraig Troxell said.
“They felt this case had some solvability to it,” Troxell said. “You have a fresh set of eyes, they’re going back and reinterviewing friends and family, relooking at evidence and sending evidence back to the state lab.”
Troxell would not say what evidence was sent for testing, but he remained hopeful the results could crack the case.
“When you look at the advancement in technology, especially in DNA technology that wasn’t even available 10 years go,” he said, “it may bring a resolution to the family and justice in the case.”
Anyone with information about Ryan’s disappearance and slaying is asked to contact Investigator Mark McCaffrey at 703-777-0475, or call Loudoun Crime Solvers at 703-777-1919 to remain anonymous. If the information leads to an arrest and indictment, you could be eligible for a cash reward of up to $1,000.
