A medical examiner completed the autopsy on Nolan Wells, the 18-year-old college student who vanished during a Fourth of July boat trip with friends.
Wells went to Horn Island, an uninhabited barrier island off the coast of Mississippi, with a group of high school friends. The Associated Press noted he was the only Black person on the boat. He did not come back with the group when they returned to the mainland of Mississippi that night.
The friends had his phone, but they told officials that he had stayed behind to talk to a girl and other friends, the Sun Herald reported.
His body was found two days later off the coast of the island.
The State Medical Examiner’s autopsy report, which was the first of two, is now complete, ABC News reported. The results have not been made public.
The autopsy, along with the other results of the investigation, will be sent to a grand jury, which will determine if his death was due to crime.
The Jackson County, Mississippi, sheriff’s office is investigating. The county district attorney’s office said in the past that convening a grand jury is standard procedure for most unnatural or suspicious deaths in the county, according to ABC News.
“Every death in the county—except those of natural causes and non-criminal car wrecks—is presented to your grand jury,” District Attorney Angel Meyers McIlrath said on July 23, WLBT reported. “Many people don’t know that we have handled death investigations in this manner my entire career.”
Wells’ family commissioned a second autopsy, which found the cause and manner of death were “undetermined pending investigation.” USA Today said the independent medical examiner was not able to inspect Wells’ throat and larynx, noting they may have been kept for additional investigation.
Attorney Ben Crump is representing Wells’ family. He said the legal team is working with ‘oceanic engineering experts" to find out why Wells’ body was found near where he was last seen. They are trying to determine how tides and weather could have affected where he was found, USA Today reported.
They are also working with audio engineers to review a distress call from a boat the day Wells disappeared, the AP reported.
The recording, released by state officials, was made by a private marine towing company that was requesting assistance for a boat taking on water near Horn Island.
“Our bilge pump stopped working. We’re sinking. Can y’all please come?” the caller can be heard saying, adding that there were several people on board. The dispatcher spoke with a captain for the towing company, who said that the boat’s owner said those onboard had solved the issue and “don’t need any help right now.”
Wells was not on the boat when it left the island, witnesses told law enforcement.
His mother said it was odd that her son’s phone had no Snapchat history the day he disappeared and that there were discrepancies in location data, USA Today reported. Crump’s team said it is working on an agreement with McIlrath’s office to jointly investigate cellphone evidence.
The Sun Herald reported that subpoenas have been issued for several social media companies such as Facebook and TikTok. Friends, family members and local officials have also been told not to delete any records because litigation is “reasonably anticipated.”
The Jackson County Sheriff’s Department is leading the investigation while the FBI is assisting, the newspaper said.
© 2026 Cox Media Group
