On September 18, a routine act of kindness in East Orange, New Jersey, ended in fatal violence. Fifty-nine-year-old Troy Traynham was outside his Chestnut Street apartment helping a friend unload groceries when a man allegedly approached and shot him, then carjacked the woman he was assisting. Traynham was taken to University Hospital in Newark and pronounced dead at 4:48 p.m.

A U.S. Navy veteran who later worked with a Defense Department investigative agency, Traynham made a living as a security specialist and as a chef for hotels and restaurants in the New York and New Jersey area. Relatives said he died protecting his girlfriend from the armed assailant. The Essex County Prosecutor’s Office and the East Orange Police Department prioritized the investigation.

Has anyone in the area seen anything that could help identify the person who shot Traynham or provide information about the attack?