People close to the Nolan Wells case are accusing the media of painting a narrative that may be harmful to the investigation.
Wells was just 18 years old when his body was found on Horn Island, Mississippi, on July 6. He and his friends were celebrating Independence Day before he went missing.
His official cause of death has not been released.
A major concern raised by many, including civil rights attorney Ben Crump, is that investigators aren’t telling the truth. Crump blamed the state’s racist past.
“It’s not adding up, and that is the problem when you think about the history of Mississippi,” Crump told Good Morning America on Friday.
Social media users were also quick to pick apart a picture of Wells, who is Black, surrounded by his group of all-white friends.
‘A Race Thing’
Jayvon Williams, Wells’ best friend, told TMZ his death is being turned into a race thing because of the inconsistencies in the investigation.
“Obviously, they’re gonna paint it as that because none of this adds up,” he said.
Williams told TMZ that investigators haven’t reached out to him about Nolan at all. He said he’s shocked because he has information about Wells’ relationship with the boys he was with on Horn Island.
Williams also clarified that a video of an argument allegedly involving Wells did not involve him. TMZ reported the video was of a different friend who was acting “very hostile” while his parents were trying to get him off the island.
The person who took the video told TMZ there was a fight on the island that involved a “mixed” kid and a white kid. That was not shown in the video, according to TMZ. It was also not the original intent of why the video was posted.
Witness Comes Forward
Tracestin Shepherd, another one of Wells’ friends, said the person in the video was him.
“That’s me yelling…there was no talk about a phone in that video,” Shepherd told ABC News. He declined to be on camera out of fear for his safety.
Shepherd said Williams and a family member were holding him back from getting into a fight.
“Nolan wasn’t on the island” at that time, according to Shepherd. He added that his friend group, including Nolan, had been drinking alcohol since late morning.
About 300 people, many of them former high school classmates, concentrated on their portion of the island.
Shepherd told ABC News the boat had to return to shore early due to an electrical issue. Wells said he wanted to stay behind because he met a girl and would return on another friend’s boat.
“Nobody would ever hurt Nolan in our friend group. We would die for him. We would do everything in our power for that guy. If he needed anything, we would do it,” he told ABC News. “Nolan brought us all together.”
Shepherd added that a picture Crump shared online of Wells at a pool party was not from July 5, as the caption claims. The party supposedly took place on June 27 in Pass Christian, Mississippi.
Atlanta Black Star has made multiple attempts to reach out to Crump to respond to the accusation of misinformation but has not heard back.
Nolan’s Phone
Shepherd also responded to claims that he or another teenager had taken Wells’ phone during his interview.
“When Nolan got in the water, he put his phone on the [boat] dash also with probably 15 other phones,” he told ABC News.
Shepherd’s uncle, who was driving one of the boats that day, said it was common for people in the boating community to ignore their phones.
Authorities told ABC News that Crump has not turned over Wells’ phone to investigators. Crump said Friday he’d turn it over after he and the family conduct an independent investigation.
Continued Death Threats
One of the mothers of Wells’ friends, Ashlee Cole, made another post about the case on Facebook. Her son, Warren Hudson, is among the group of friends that social media is pointing fingers at.
Cole shared screenshots of comments and messages of threats she’s received in recent days.
“We have not had the opportunity to speak to the Wells-Wonsley family of their attorney,” she said. Cole added that she is willing to meet with them.
“We also want to know what happened to Nolan. We will do everything within our power to assist Nolan’s family in their quest for answers,” Cole said.
‘Everybody Just Relax’
Shepherd says he is upset by the suggestions that race played a role in Wells’ death.
“They’re trying to spin a narrative that’s not there,” he said.
Shepherd told the outlet he wants “everybody just to relax and let everybody mourn the loss of Nolan. And let us remember him as the sweet guy he was, not something we’re scared of because of the trauma we’ve had.”
“If Ben Crump is doing his own investigation, let him do it. And then let the sheriff’s office conclude with their investigation and figure out what the facts are on their end. Let us all just know the truth instead of jumping to two conclusions about things.”
