Nolan Wells’ Phone Conversations Show What His Friends Said When He Disappeared

Group chats taken from Nolan Wells’ cellphone show what his friends said before and after the Mississippi teen disappeared in early July following a boating trip with friends.

Wells disappeared after he and a group of friends celebrated the Fourth of July off the Gulf Coast. They say he left his phone on their boat but didn’t return with them.

A nearly 300-page report analyzing the late teen’s phone and recently posted online on the Justice for Nolan Wells website reveals his friends’ reactions to his disappearance and speculation about his death in dozens of group chats.

On July 5, a group chat discusses when Wells was last seen, saying, “He got off our boat with this other guy and they started going back to their boat.” A few minutes later, a friend calls it suspicious and says, “There’s definitely some suspicious shit going on.” »

At one point, they talked about trying to find Wells, asking everyone to check their camera rolls. Another user added: “See if he was talking to someone we don’t know.”

Another post read: “It’s not like Nolan bro is just letting go.”

Someone else wrote: “He must be slumped somewhere, I hope.” Another responds, “But it’s already noon,” followed by, “Maybe he was on drugs or something.”

Wells’ body was found in the waters off Horn Island two days later. Once news of his death broke, a friend messaged: “Nolan was the kindest, most caring guy we knew.”

The day after his disappearance, the group seemed frustrated by national headlines, writing, “All I see is white people went home and the one black kid didn’t.” Another replied: “It was never like that with us, bro.”

Last month, the Jackson County prosecutor announced that a Mississippi grand jury found no foul play in Wells’ death.

Legal analyst Jessica Levinson told CBS News there is nothing in the newly released report that would change the prosecutor’s conclusion that there is no evidence of a crime.

Wells’ parents spoke to CBS News in July, with his father Elmore Wonsley saying he didn’t believe his son decided to stay on the island alone. “That’s just not the case, that’s not his character,” he said.