CORPUS CHRISTI, Tx — The father of the man who was found after being missing for over a month says employees at a local convenience store helped find him.
Jerry Zamora III, who suffers from catatonia schizophrenia, went missing on Feb. 20. but was found safe in the Clarkwood neighborhood in Northwest Corpus Christi on Monday, April 8. Over the past few weeks, Jerry Zamora II was concerned because his son had not been taking his medications. Zamora said due to his medical condition, his son forgets things.
"He forgets stuff. He has no comprehension. It's the way he is," Jerry Zamora II said.
According to Zamora's father, his son disappeared from the Oso Creek trails but, over the past few weeks, had been spotted in fields and security cameras in the Old Brownsville Road area.
Zamora said he had also received calls that his son was in the Clarkwood area. He was told his son had been frequenting the Sunrise Foods store on Clarkwood Road and Highway 44, where several truckers and customers were providing him with food.
Sunrise Foods Store Manager Michael Wetzel said they began feeding Zamora after people saw him digging in the trash.
"We've been giving him food, a cheeseburger here and there. "(We said) Hey how are you doing?... Here recently, we’ve been bringing him in trying to delay until cops or family would come in. It seemed like he got spooked at times. He would eat real quick," Wetzel said.
Employees had seen Jerry Zamora III hanging around the store for about three or four weeks. They didn't realize he was the man who had been reported missing until two weeks ago when his father stopped by the store with flyers with Zamora's photo.
"All of our cashiers kind of looked at the flyer and said that’s definitely him. The nighttime people said that’s him because he’ll come in randomly throughout the day like at eight or nine in the morning, noon or 8 o’clock at night," Wetzel said.
Jerry Zamora II, who was desperate to make contact with his son, knew his son's phone was dead. So, he gave employees a phone charger and asked them to nonchalantly give it to Jerry the next time he would come by the store so that he could charge his phone.
On Monday, he learned that Zamora was walking near the old Corpus Christi Speedway on Agnes near North Padre Island Drive around 3 p.m. The store employees called him and said Zamora was walking near the store. Thanks to that phone call, Zamora and his family found Jerry in a field near the Clarkwood area.
Zamora is currently at Spohn Shoreline getting evaluated. He will be taken to a secondary health facility after his evaluation to get his medication routine back on track.
Meanwhile, the employees at Sunrise Foods are happy that Zamora has been reunited with his family. Wetzel said they wouldn't mind being reunited with Jerry if the family is open to that.
