Mr. Heinman was a spy for the Nazis during World War II. An expert on the occult, he was located on an island in the West Indies that was a British territory at the time. By 1944 he used his occult knowledge and local superstitions to craft the identity of the Zombie Master. Using specially made headbands, he reanimated the corpses of the dead and had them attack Allied bases around the island, attracting the attention of the Sub-Mariner. When the locals told the islands Governor that the attacks were caused by dead men, Heinman in his civilian identity was called to weigh in. In order to protect his alter ego, Heinmen suggested that it was nothing more than local superstition.