AS questions still linger around the tragic death of a rising football star, the teen’s family have made an important decision regarding his autopsy.
Nolan Xavier Wells, 18, vanished during a July 4 party with friends and was found dead two days later on Horn Island, Mississippi.
His family have since hired top civil rights attorney Ben Crump to ensure a “transparent” investigation into his death after unanswered details surrounding Nolan’s final hours swirled.
Crump – who worked with the family of George Floyd – said Wednesday the body of the 18-year-old was being flown to Washington, D.C., for an independent autopsy.
The results of the test are expected on Friday.
Details of the state’s autopsy have not been released.
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Investigators say he is expected to have drowned.
But a cause and manner of death haven’t been released
Crump told ABC News: “Obviously, the biggest question is what happened to Nolan Wells.
“I think the reason this case has caught such fire is because they see the pictures, they see the video, and they’re saying, ‘Hold on, you’re trying to tell us just accept this accident and sweep it under the rug?’”
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He added: “We have investigators talking to witnesses that have no alignment or no allegiance to the state, and that’s important.”
The unanswered details around Nolan’s final hours, including who last saw him, how he became separated from his phone, and whether he made it back to shore, have fueled a wave of online speculation.
A mom to one of Nolan’s friends said her son and the others left the island after experiencing issues with their boat.
Ashlee Cole, a Chancery Court judge who graduated high school with Nolan’s mother Christine Wonsley, said the group of friends left the island at around 4:30pm on Saturday.
Cole said her son Warren last saw Nolan on Horn Island at around 3pm before the group headed back to the mainland.
“They left around 4:30 pm when the boat was taking on water and they had an issue with the bilge pump,” Cole said in a statement.
Cole said Nolan “made a decision to stay on the island and return inland later with another group of friends.”
Cole’s comments come after friend Jayvon Williams, 17, said he saw Nolan on the island hanging out with a girl and chatting with another group of friends.
Williams said the two were supposed to travel to Horn Island together, but the boat Nolan jumped on quickly filled up.
Instead, Williams rode on a separate boat, but saw Nolan once he stepped onto the island.
“As soon as we got out there. He told me that he loved me,” Williams told Nola.com about his brief interaction with Nolan.
The multi-agency search operation ended on Monday when authorities said a body matching Nolan’s description was found on the island in close proximity to where the teenager was last seen.
On Wednesday, Jackson County Sheriff John Ledbetter said investigators have not found evidence of a crime yet.
This comes after investigators said they’re reviewing a viral social media footage that allegedly showed a tense confrontation on Horn Island on the day Nolan went missing.
The video appeared to show several people arguing near the shoreline as boats lined the beach.
Joshua Gill, the United Cajun Navy’s incident coordinator for the search effort, previously told The U.S. Sun that as far as he knows none of Nolan’s friends stayed behind and waited for him.
