Family pleads for help after longtime Jersey City businessman dies

RANDOLPH, New Jersey (WABC) -- Authorities and distraught relatives are pleading for help after the victim of a New Jersey robbery last November succumbed to his injuries.

Now, investigators are requesting the public's assistance in locating two individuals connected to the armed robbery that resulted in the death of a longtime Jersey City businessman.

Irving Catlow, Jr., 74, of Randolph, was pronounced dead at Morristown Medical Center on April 1, nearly five months to the day after he was attacked at his furniture delivery business.

"He needs justice," son Mark Catlow said, through tears. "Hard worker...if they would've came in and asked for the money, said they needed it for their families, he would've given it to them."

The medical examiner determined the cause of death to be complications of blunt force injuries to the head.

"He had a broken nose, broken eye sockets, concussion," Mark Catlow said.

On November 4, 2016, at approximately 8:30 a.m., Jersey City police were dispatched to 704 Summit Avenue in Jersey City on a report of an armed robbery.

Arriving officers found Catlow conscious with multiple wounds to his face and head. He was rushed to Jersey City Medical Center, where he was treated and released before seeking additional treatment at Morristown Medical Center. He remained there until his death.

The initial investigation revealed that two men entered an office area at Catlow Movers Delivery Service between 8:10 and 8:30 a.m. Catlow described one of the suspects as a short black male and the other as a tall black male, and one of the suspects was armed with a chrome handgun.

Approximately $400 was taken from the victim's wallet, along with all of his keys, and Catlow was struck in the head and face before the suspects fled in an unknown direction.

Upon Catlow's death, the case was turned over to the Prosecutor's Homicide Unit, which is actively investigating the case with assistance from the Jersey City Police Department.

Catlow was recently laid to rest, and one of the moving vans from his business was used as his hearse.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Office of the Hudson County Prosecutor at 201-915-1345 or to leave an anonymous tip on the Prosecutor's Office official website. All information will be kept confidential.