Friends of 36-year-old Matthew Morris of Canton remain puzzled at the lack of leads indicating his whereabouts following his January disappearance. 

Since a follow-up report aired this week on Detroit's WDIV-TV, however, one friend says the search for Morris has intensified.

Morris' car turned up with a flat tire at Emagine Canton, but his cell phone and medications remained at his apartment across the street at Ford and Lotz roads.

"There still aren't any leads, but since the Channel 4 (WDIV-TV) update, it seems to have started more intense searches," said Mandy Neher-Kaufman, a friend and colleague of Morris. "Helicopters have been flying over the areas of his apartment and movie theater where his car was found."

Neher-Kaufman told Plymouth-Canton Patch in January she had worked with Morris for 12 years at Kroger in Canton and last heard from Morris on Jan. 9 and he is believed to have disappeared between Jan. 13-14. She said Morris' Kroger colleagues essentially are his family and that Morris doesn't keep in contact with his biological family from out of state.

Morris is 36 years old, approximate 5-foot-10, about 180 pounds, wears glasses and usually wear a light blue Seton Hall University baseball cap.

Neher-Kaufman said in January that Morris is a diabetic who has struggled with anxiety issues and has been in and out of hospital care, but always checked in with his coworkers with his whereabouts. 

In recent days, Neher-Kaufman said, police have taken dogs out to pick up Morris' scent in the area where his car was found and near his apartment, but she said the chances to find him might improve with warmer weather.

"If something horrible has happened to him, it would be easier for police dogs to detect smells in the warm weather," she said. 

While Neher-Kaufman still hopes for a positive outcome, she said she and friends are seeking answers and closure.

"We still have hope, but at this point we really want some form of closure," she said. "Any news would help all of us accept Matt maybe not coming back."