Family of missing teen hires experts to review boat distress call

The family of Nolan Wells, an 18-year-old who disappeared and was later found deceased, has enlisted audio engineers to scrutinize a distress call made from a boat on July 4, the day he was last seen. This move comes amid mounting online speculation and accusations of defamation surrounding the ongoing investigation into his death.

The recording, recently released by Mississippi authorities, captures a call to a private marine towing company. The caller reported a boat taking on water off Horn Island, where Wells was last seen, stating, "Our bilge pump stopped working. We're sinking. Can y'all please come?" The dispatcher was informed by a towing company captain that a relative of the boat owner had reported the issue resolved and no longer required assistance.

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Our bilge pump stopped working. We're sinking. Can y'all please come?

Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, representing the Wells family, announced the retention of audio engineering experts at the National Urban League Conference. The legal team is also pressing prosecutors to include external authorities in the review of phones belonging to Wells' friends who accompanied him to the island. Wells' parents attended the conference, appealing for anyone with information to come forward, with his mother, Christine Wonsley, stating, "We will not rest until we get answers."

The teenager's death has fueled widespread speculation, exacerbated by uncertainties about his final hours, a perceived distrust of law enforcement, and Mississippi's history of racial violence. Wells, who was Black, had traveled to the uninhabited island with a group of white high school friends and did not return with them. His body was discovered off the island's coast two days later. Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter initially stated that Wells' friends were cooperating and foul play was not suspected, though few details have been released since. An independent autopsy commissioned by the family was inconclusive regarding the cause of death.

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We will not rest until we get answers.