Feds Now Investigating Threats in Nolan Wells Case

Federal agents are now tracking not just what happened to 18-year-old Nolan Wells on a Mississippi barrier island—but what's being said about it, reports Fox News. Mississippi Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell says the FBI is investigating threats aimed at public officials, witnesses, Wells' companions, and members of his family as rumors and "false information" about the July 4 death swirl online. Gov. Tate Reeves is blaming civil rights attorney Ben Crump and the Rev. Al Sharpton for "stoking division for personal gain," while Rep. André Carson accuses Mississippi officials of a lack of transparency and says the family isn't getting answers.

Attorney General Lynn Fitch vowed to prosecute anyone who threatens investigators, saying in a statement that, "Efforts to intimidate, disrupt, or interfere with the work of our law enforcement and prosecutors and threats to their well-being will be taken seriously and we will hold those who make them accountable." Added Tindell, "I'm sure state law enforcement and the FBI is going to be very interested in investigating. So, you know, when you make those types of threats against public officials, against possible witnesses, and against ... the folks that are involved in this investigation and the family, then you are also committing a criminal act, and that's going to be taken very, very seriously,"

The state's official autopsy won't be released to the public until it is handed to a grand jury, Jackson County District Attorney Angel Myers McIlrath tells the Mississippi Free Press. "I understand the public's urgency to know what happened to Nolan, but we are not taking time for time's sake," McIlrath said. "We are taking the time required to complete the work this investigation demands." An independent autopsy requested by the family found a red area on Wells' head but did not determine the cause or manner of death, adding to public scrutiny. Authorities say Wells' friends left Horn Island without him and believe he chose to stay; his body was found two days later.