Joseph Robertson, 78, was found dead inside his Oakland Hills home on Thackeray Drive in Montclair on February 23, 2012. Friends discovered the body early that Thursday morning, around 7:00–7:18 a.m., and police have treated the death as suspicious and are investigating it as a possible homicide. The body had been inside the house for several days before being found.

Robertson, a retired graphic artist who worked for the Montclarion for 20 years, lived alone and was described by neighbors and family as gentle, peaceful, and well liked. Neighbors expressed shock, noting a recent string of burglaries and break-ins in the area; some residents said Robertson’s door had been found kicked in, though police did not confirm that detail. It was also reported that someone who had been living with him was kicked out the previous year, but police did not identify that person as a suspect.

If anyone in Montclair remembers seeing Joseph, his visitors, or unusual activity at his Thackeray Drive home in the days before February 23, please come forward with information.