Nolan Wells Case: Family Releases 292-Page Phone Report Showing Friends' Messages After July 4 Disappearance
Family Releases 292-Page Phone Report
The family of Nolan Wells has released a forensic report examining messages from Wells' phone in the days surrounding his disappearance, offering a detailed look at how his friends communicated as they tried to account for his whereabouts.
The report, produced by digital forensics firm Garrett Discovery, was released through the Justice for Nolan Wells website on Oct. 13-14, 2026. It runs roughly 292 pages and covers 29 group chats from Wells' phone, along with his private Snapchat conversations.
Wells, 18, traveled by boat with friends to Horn Island, Mississippi, on July 4, 2026. His friends have said they left the island that afternoon after their boat began taking on water, and that Wells stayed behind to ride back with others. His phone was left on their boat. His family reported him missing that night, and a park ranger found his body in the water off Horn Island on the morning of July 6.
The released messages begin just after midnight on July 5, as friends realized no one knew where Wells was. They show confusion and growing suspicion as the group tried to figure out whose boat he had gotten on, and questions about why he would have left his phone behind.
As investigators began contacting people connected to Wells, the messages show friends advising each other to ask for a lawyer if questioned and to stick to what they knew rather than speculate.
A Jackson County grand jury declined to indict anyone in the case, a decision announced Sept. 21, returning a "no true bill." Both the state medical examiner's autopsy and an independent autopsy arranged by the family listed the cause and manner of death as undetermined. The family has called for a federal review of the case.
The released messages do not by themselves establish who was responsible for Wells' death.
The family's official fundraiser: https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-loving-memory-of-nolan-xavier-wells
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