Manassas Denny's Suspects Indicted On Murder Charges

MANASSAS, VA — Two suspects accused in the Dec. 26 robbery and fatal shooting at a Manassas-area Denny’s restaurant were indicted by a grand jury Monday of first-degree murder and other charges. The indictments cover the killing of a food delivery driver and the shooting of a customer at the restaurant in the early morning hours after Christmas.

Prince William County Commonwealth’s Attorney Amy Ashworth announced the indictments against Ryan Thomas Walker, 23, of Chesapeake Beach, Maryland, and Jordan Lee Anderson, 22, of Manassas. A first-degree murder conviction would come with a potential sentence of 20 years to life in prison.

Area residents were on edge in the days after the Denny's burglary and killing. By Dec. 29, police had arrested Walker and Anderson in connection with the case.

The grand jury returned 170 indictments, covering “the acts perpetrated upon the 23 people inside of the Denny’s,” according to a statement from Ashworth’s office.

At about 2:25 a.m. on Dec. 26, the Prince William County Police Department said the pair entered the Denny's at 8201 Sudley Road, demanded money, cellphones and wallets from employees and customers of the restaurant.

Yusuf Ozgur, who worked for the DoorDash food delivery service and was picking up an order at the Denny's in the early morning hours of Dec. 26, opened the door for the two, not knowing that they had just shot a customer, police said. One suspect, who the police believe was Walker, hit Ozgur in the head with a baton, and the other, Anderson, shot and killed him, police said.

A GoFundMe page set up to help Ozgur's family with funeral and other family expenses has raised more than $190,000.

Before leaving the restaurant, a customer who was sitting on the ground as ordered by the men was shot in the upper body, according to the police. The customer, publicly identified only as a 34-year-old man from Rixeyville in Culpeper County, survived his gunshot wounds.

Ashworth said her office sought the indictments against Walker and Anderson "following an exhaustive review of the evidence and consultation with the victims, their families and the investigators."

On Dec. 29, Anderson was located by members of the Prince William County Special Investigations Bureau and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives following a vehicle stop in the Newington section of Fairfax County. A search warrant was subsequently conducted on Anderson's vehicle and his residence in Manassas where additional evidence was recovered.

Walker was taken into custody on Dec. 29 by the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force in Maryland. Walker was located at the home of an acquaintance in Chesapeake Beach, Maryland, where he was arrested without incident, the police said.