Friend first to report Nolan Wells missing after Horn Island trip, sheriff confirms
One of the three young men who traveled by boat to Horn Island with Nolan Xavier Wells on the Fourth of July was the first to report him missing that night, authorities confirmed Thursday.
“At approximately 11 p.m. on July 4, 2026, the Coast Guard was notified of a missing person near Horn Island,” U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Cheyenne Basurto said Thursday. “The initial notification did not require Coast Guard assistance.”
Wells’ mother, Christine Wonsley, was the second person to report her son missing. She called the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department about midnight after learning he had not returned home.
On July 5 at 12:26 p.m., the Coast Guard received a request from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Department for search-and-rescue assistance.
Two days after Wells disappeared, a National Park Service ranger found his body in the water off the northwestern tip of Horn Island.
Wells, 18, of Ocean Springs, was Black. He traveled to the island with three white friends, who returned to shore without him. They told investigators Wells stayed behind to talk with a girl and spend time with other friends.
Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter confirmed Thursday that one of the three young men who traveled to the island with Wells made the first missing-person report.
The Mississippi State Medical Examiner’s Office has completed an autopsy, but the results remain pending.
Since Wells’ death, his parents hired prominent civil rights attorney Ben Crump to conduct an independent investigation.
Crump said Wells’ body was later flown to Washington, D.C., for an independent autopsy. He also addressed the family’s concerns during an interview with independent journalist Don Lemon.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is scheduled to join Wells’ family and Crump on Friday at a news conference at the National Action Network’s House of Justice in Harlem, according to a news release from Crump’s office.
According to the release, they will call for a “full and transparent investigation,” the timely release of investigative records and findings, and answers about how Wells was left behind on a remote island and never returned home.
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Department said the investigation remains active. Investigators have urged the public to provide only firsthand information, including original photos and videos taken on the island that day.
This story was originally published July 9, 2026 at 3:02 PM.
