Case Details

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This person was missing Missing Since 03/13/1972

Missing Since:

Missing Since 03/13/1972

Missing From:

Missing From Manhattan, New York

Classification:

Classification Endangered Missing

Gender:

Male

Race:

Race White

Date of Birth:

Date of Birth 05/09/1951 (73)

Age:

Age 20 years old

Height and Weight:

Height and Weight 5’10, 158 pounds

Clothing/Jewelry Description:

Clothing/Jewelry Description A winter jacket, a knit hat and a scarf.

Distinguishing Characteristics:

Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian male. Brown hair, green eyes. Chait had a mustache and beard at the time of his 1972 disappearance. He wears eyeglasses. Chait has light scarring around his left eye.

Details of Disappearance:

In 1972, a Columbia University student named Chait vanished. He lived in a dorm, worked at a deli, and was last seen leaving his room on March 13th. He left everything behind – books, passport, even uncashed paychecks – giving no warning.

Chait was a serious, thoughtful young man who may have been depressed. He’d been a good student but struggled with a poor grade, leading him to change his major. He enjoyed classical music, running, and art. He was involved in many good causes, donating blood and belonging to environmental groups.

For 25 years after he disappeared, his mother received mysterious phone calls. The caller wouldn’t speak, but she believed it was Chait and would leave messages of love. These calls stopped in 1997.

Chait’s disappearance remains a mystery. His family – his mother, brother, and sister – still hope he’ll be found. His sister even created a track scholarship at Columbia in his honor.

Agency:

New York Police Department 646-610-6914

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