Howard Comis, 59 and known as Zebra, disappeared from his Bronx apartment in the fall of 2011. On October 7, 2011, he left his home and his pit bull with a neighbor, saying he would be in Harlem for a few days and would return quickly from a nearby pet store with dog food. He never came back; the neighbor ultimately surrendered the dog to the ASPCA.

Comis, who lived with bipolar disorder, may have stopped taking his medication before he vanished and was reported to have exhibited increasingly erratic behavior in the weeks before he left, including making harassing phone calls to his daughter and possibly selling medication. He was an online university student who left behind his laptop and furniture, and his phone went silent after October 8. Friends reported unconfirmed theories and potential sightings, including a possible connection to people he was supposed to travel to Harlem with and a suggestion he might have been involved with Occupy Wall Street, but none of those leads have been substantiated.

The NYPD Missing Persons Squad investigated, and Comis’s frequented places included a pool hall on 207th Street in Manhattan. With conflicting accounts about his last movements and little concrete evidence, his disappearance remains unresolved. If anyone knew Howard, saw him after October 7, 2011, or has information about his plans or companions that week, please come forward.