Family, Friends Grieve For 'Big-Hearted,' Funny West New York Duo Found Dead In River

They remembered how funny he was, and how big Ali Harb's heart was. But the laughter has stopped since Harb and Juan Bustamonte were found dead in the Hudson River this week.

Now family and friends of Harb and Bustamonte are coming to grips with their losses since both were identified as the two deceased bodies recovered from the river near Weehawken Cove on Tuesday morning.

Harb, 41, of West New York, and Bustamonte, 35, of Union City, were found near the border of Hoboken and Weehawken.

"Everyone knew him and liked him for his generosity, kindness and funny personality," Harb's sister, Moses Harb, wrote on a GoFundMe page that was set up to handle the man's funeral costs.

"He will truly be missed."

Harb's wit and Bustamonte's laugh were unmistakable, friends said at a recent vigil for the two men, and it made the pair a bit of a comedy duo going back to their high school days in West New York, according to nj.com.

"Ali was somebody that I knew since high school," Frank Arostegni, a classmate from Memorial High School in West New York, said in the report. "He was a very funny person. And he was a character. And he was a fixture on Bergenline Avenue."

In the report, Arostegni recalled Harb's presence at the corner of Bergenline and 62nd Street, where he worked at the family sports promotion business, Zam Zam Sport LLC. He also remembered his glory days as captain of the Memorial High School football team.

Bustamonte, like Harb, also grew up in West New York and was a Memorial High School graduate, according to the report. West New York Commissioner Susan Colacurcio, who taught at Memorial and was among the mourners at Wednesday night's vigil, recalled to nj.com that Bustamonte was the quieter of the two men but was the one to laugh at Harb's wit.

"I can't even describe it," he said of the laugh. "Just raspy."

The discovery happened when officers arrived on the scene around 8 a.m., just after receiving a 911 call about a body floating in the cove. They discovered a second body in the water floating near the first one about an hour later, authorities said.

Both of the bodies “appeared to be male and lifeless when discovered,” and the two were pronounced dead at 10:45 a.m., prosecutors said.

See related article: 2 Bodies Found In Hudson River Near Hoboken and Weehawken Border

Emergency responders with the Hoboken Fire Department removed them from the water, secured them and provided a tentative identification, prosecutors said.

Homicide squad detectives subsequently confirmed Harb and Bustamonte’s identities.

“At this stage of the investigation, the two deaths do not appear to be suspicious and there should be no concern to the public,” prosecutors said Tuesday.

The exact cause and manner of death are still pending the findings of a medical examiner, prosecutors stated.

The Prosecutor’s Homicide Unit is investigating the case with assistance from the Hoboken Police Department. Anyone with information can contact the Office of the Hudson County Prosecutor at 201-915-1345, or leave an anonymous tip on the Prosecutor’s Office website.

Photo: Ali Harb, from GoFundMe