Christine Wonsley confirmed Monday afternoon that her son, Nolan Xavier Wells, had died after a body was found on Horn Island during the search for the missing college student. The family’s confirmation came as authorities said the body matched Wells’ description but were still waiting on DNA testing results.
Wells, 18, disappeared on Saturday, July 4, while visiting Horn Island with a group of friends, and he was last seen around 3 p.m. after going out on a boat earlier in the day. Wonsley said on Facebook that her heart was broken for her son and that his father, family and friends were absolutely devastated.
The search had turned into a multi-agency effort by Monday, with state, federal and local teams joining the hunt on the barrier island about 10 miles south of Pascagoula, Mississippi. Jackson County Coroner Bruce Lynd said there was no reason to believe the body was not Wells, but the official identification still depended on the pending DNA test.
That uncertainty is the last gap in the case. The body was found, the family has spoken, and the public part of the search has ended, but the cause of death has not been determined. For Wells’ family, classmates and teammates at Southwest Mississippi Community College, the waiting now is for the test results to match what everyone already fears is true.
Wells would have turned 19 next month and was set to return to Southwest Mississippi Community College to practice for the football season. He played wide receiver for the SMCC Bears, and J. Steven Bishop said the entire Southwest family was heartbroken as it mourned the tragic loss of Nolan Wells.
