A well-known civil rights attorney, representing the family of Nolan Wells, is backing a rather unlikely theory that he might have returned to shore before his tragic end. A friend of Wells has stated that he is not the one seen in a video related to the altercation on Horn Island.
Nolan Wells, just 18, was found deceased in the waters near an uninhabited island off Mississippi, two days after he went missing during a boat trip with friends over the Fourth of July.
His family is pursuing an independent investigation. Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter has remarked that the details surrounding Wells’ death “don’t add up,” although he hasn’t hinted at any criminal implications—at least not yet.
Friends photographed with Wells on the day of his disappearance have faced backlash for returning to land without him.
The family’s attorney, Ben Crump, shared a post on Sunday that speculated further, suggesting that perhaps Nolan did make it safely back from the island and might have even been seen at a pool party afterward.
The post, reposted from Shannel Tarot TV, noted: “It’s the talk of the town! Now listen up. There’s no confirmed official statement, so we don’t know if this is fact or rumor.”
The post continued, “Sometimes we have to follow every lead until we find the truth.” It also mentioned that social media chatter claims there are photos of Nolan at an athletics pool party in Jackson County shortly after midnight on July 5th.
In the accompanying photo, a group of young people smile at the camera; however, a boy in the background, whose face is not clear, is surrounded by red, with speculation that this could be Wells.
This unverified theory suggests that Wells might have been brought back to the island and was later discovered by a U.S. Park Service ranger on July 6.
In the interim, authorities are looking into a viral video that allegedly shows an altercation on Horn Island just before Wells disappeared.
Crump has alleged that the video captures Wells saying, “Give me my freaking cell phone. What’s crazy?” Yet, a friend asserted on Sunday that the video does not depict Wells yelling, but rather someone else.
Tracestine Shepard explained to Rolling Stone that a friend who lived nearby got into an argument with his girlfriend, which escalated tensions. Shepard mentioned that she initially intended to leave but had a change of heart and decided to stay a bit longer.
At that moment, someone on a different boat began recording and caught her yelling.
Shepard insisted, “In that video, you hear someone screaming, and that’s me. To be more precise, ‘Get me off this boat.’ I felt like I wasn’t getting my due.” According to Rolling Stone, her girlfriend, uncle, and a family friend corroborated her description of events in the video.
The owner of the viral footage told TMZ that while he had heard of an altercation happening on the island, the actual incident was not captured in the video.
Nolan’s friend, Javon Williams, separately informed the media that a fight had taken place, but that Wells was not involved.
The newspaper has reached out to Ben Crump’s office for a statement.
