On the morning of Saturday, August 14, 1971, the body of Ralph Edward Kmetz was found inside his car at Columbia Island Marina on the Virginia side of the Potomac River, near the Pentagon. He had been fatally shot, and the vehicle was discovered at about 9:40 a.m. The Metropolitan Police Department opened a homicide investigation and the Major Case Squad is listed as handling the matter.

The case remains unsolved and investigators have periodically asked the public for information. No arrests or names of suspects or persons of interest have been publicly released, and the motive for the killing is unknown. Anyone who knew Ralph Edward Kmetz or who has information about the shooting at Columbia Island Marina is asked to come forward.