Scott Wayne Ratigan, 24, of Arlington, Virginia, was found dead in his apartment in the Ballston neighborhood on the evening of January 17, 2020. Officers were dispatched around 5:29 p.m. to the 800 block of North Randolph Street after a relative, unable to reach him, entered his bedroom and discovered him unresponsive; the initial call to police was for a possible cardiac arrest. Medics pronounced Ratigan dead at the scene. He had suffered trauma to the upper body, and an autopsy by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ruled the death a homicide. Evidence recovered from the residence indicated the person or persons responsible attempted to clean the scene before fleeing; a 911 caller reported a strong smell of bleach in the apartment. Ratigan, originally from Gainesville, Virginia, was a 2018 graduate of Radford University. At the time of his death he lived in the apartment with his sister, who was out of town retrieving friends from the airport when he was found.
The Arlington County Police Department's Homicide/Robbery Unit is the lead investigating agency. On the one-year anniversary of the killing, in January 2021, detectives released exterior surveillance video showing a person of interest leaving the area around the suspected time of the homicide. The individual is described as a white male, approximately 5'6"–5'8" tall and weighing 150–175 lbs, dressed in dark clothing with the face covered, carrying a black backpack, and walking with a distinctive pigeon-toed gait; this person has not been identified as of the case's most recent public update in January 2025. No arrest has been made. The Ratigan family has offered a reward, increased in October 2021 from $25,000 to $50,000, for information leading to an arrest and conviction. Anyone with information is asked to contact ACPD's Homicide/Robbery Unit at 703-228-4180 or ACPDTipline@arlingtonva.us, or to report anonymously through Arlington County Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS (8477).
