A call for help: Redacted report leaves questions in Nolan Wells investigation
Christine Wonsley called the Jackson County Sheriff's Department at 12:22 a.m. July 5 to report her 18-year-old son, Nolan Xavier Wells, missing, according to a redacted incident report released by the investigating agency in response to a public records request.
Before contacting the sheriff's department, Wonsley checked with the Ocean Springs Police Department and then the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources to determine which agency should handle the report after her son failed to return from a July 4 boat trip to Horn Island.
The report provides little new information, because much of it was redacted.
According to the report, Wonsley last saw her son between 5 and 6 p.m. on July 3. Wells traveled to Horn Island with three friends around 10 a.m. on July 4.
Wonsley also provided investigators with a description of her son's Nissan Sentra and its license plate number, because he had left home in the vehicle the previous day.
Wells, who was Black, traveled to Horn Island with three white friends. The three young men returned to shore with Wells' cellphone but without him.
According to the sheriff's department, the friends told investigators they last saw Wells around 3 p.m. They said he chose to remain on the island to talk with a young woman and another group of friends.
One of the young men's mothers, Jackson County Chancery Judge Ashlee Cole, later released a public statement confirming Wells accompanied her son, Warren, and two other young men on the July 4 trip.
"Warren was interviewed by the Jackson County Sheriff's Department and cooperated fully," she wrote. "He last saw Nolan around 3 p.m. on July 4."
According to Cole, the group left the island around 4:30 p.m. after their boat began taking on water because of problems with the bilge pump.
"Nolan made a decision to stay on the island and return later with another group of friends," she wrote.
Cole also said no one in her family had attempted "to impede the investigation by law enforcement or to otherwise hamper the family and law enforcement's quest for answers."
Dispatch audio from towing company
Since then, dispatch audio from the private boat towing company, Sea Tow, captured the moment that one of the three friends called in for help after their 23-foot boat began taking on water.
The distress call went out around 4 p.m., about an hour after the friends said they last saw Nolan Wells at the island.
In the audio first obtained by NBC News, the caller asked for help after the boat suffered a bilge pump failure, something Cole had previously mentioned in a statement because her son was one of the three Wells who traveled by private boat to the island.
“Hey, we’re at the west tip of Horn, and our bilge pump stopped working,” the caller said. “We’re going. We’re sinking. Can you please come?“
When asked if everyone was on the boat and OK at the time, the caller said, “Yeah, yeah, everybody is on board.”
That didn’t include Nolan Wells, whose friends said he stayed behind to talk to a girl and another group of friends.
GPS tracking
According to a report from the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, GPS tracking provided a timeline for the boat that Wells traveled on to the island.
The tracking showed that the boat departed a private dock around 9:56 a.m. on July 4 and arrived at Horn Island around 11:14 a.m, according to the report, first obtained by CBS News.
The boat left the island at 4:31 p.m., the report said.
The boat headed into Fort Bayou around 5:52 p.m. and returned to the dock at 6:06 p.m., the report said.
Later, around 7:19 p.m., the boat arrived at the Fort Bayou boat launch, the report said.
The boat was tracked on land after that while it was being towed by vehicle to the boat owner’s home.
Searching for Nolan Wells
According to the U.S. Coast Guard, a friend first called the Coast Guard around 11 on July 4 to report Wells missing. The sheriff confirmed the caller was one of the three friends Wells accompanied to Horn Island.
By then, Wells' family had already begun searching for him after he failed to return home.
Using a cellphone tracking application, Wonsley located her son's phone at a residence. Family members retrieved the phone and later picked up Wells' vehicle from another home. A National Park Service ranger found Wells' body off the western tip of Northwest Horn Island on July 6.
The Jackson County Sheriff's Department, assisted by the FBI, continues to investigate Wells' death to determine whether criminal wrongdoing occurred, in addition, federal agents also looking into threats made against some of those who came forward with information.
Cole is among those who have received death threats since Wells disappeared.
Another teenager also came forward to dispel rumors surrounding a video circulating on social media. The teen said the person heard yelling for someone to give him his phone back was not Wells, but himself.
The investigation continues
Sheriff John Ledbetter said investigators have interviewed about 60 people. The FBI is conducting forensic examinations of electronic devices and reviewing a large amount of digital evidence.
The Sheriff’s Department’s incident report does not provide additional details because some portions are redacted.
Since Wells' death, his parents, Christine and Elmore Wonsley, have retained civil rights attorney Ben Crump to conduct an independent investigation.
Crump's legal team also arranged for an independent autopsy, although the findings have not been released.
The Mississippi State Medical Examiner also performed an autopsy. Jackson County Coroner Bruce Lynd Jr. said the results are pending the outcome of toxicology testing. No preliminary cause of death has been released.
Legal team meets with district attorney
Crump said Wells' parents are frustrated investigators have not told them whether they believe foul play was involved.
"They're not telling the family anything about whether it was foul play or not," Crump said. "That's why the family is so desperate for answers because they're saying, 'We don't want you to just wrap up this investigation and say, "Oh, well, it was just an accident," and sweep it under the rug.'"
Crump also said the family has concerns about Wells' cellphone, alleging messages had been deleted.
Since then, Crump and his legal team along with the Wells’ parents met with Jackson County District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath.
Afterward, Crump said there will be a “mutual investigation” of Wells’ cellphone. The cellphone, which has been in the hands of Crump’s independent investigators, will be shared with the county and federal agents investigating the case.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Department, assisted by the FBI, continues to investigate Wells’ death to determine whether criminal wrongdoing occurred. The FBI also is investigating threats made against some of the people who have come forward with information.
Cole and her family are among those who have received death threats since Wells disappeared.
Ledbetter has said investigators have interviewed about 60 people, but the investigation remains active and ongoing. The FBI is conducting forensic examinations of electronic devices and reviewing a large amount of digital evidence.
Once the investigation is completed, the district attorney said the evidence will be presented to a grand jury to determine if a crime occurred.
Meanwhile, Wells’ funeral is set Monday at Center Pointe Church on Highway 57 in Ocean Springs.
This story was originally published July 17, 2026 at 10:14 AM with the headline "A call for help: Redacted report leaves questions in Nolan Wells investigation."
