Federal authorities have charged three people from different states with making threats against a judge, a witness, and other officials connected to the investigation into the death of Nolan Xavier Wells, an 18-year-old Mississippi man whose body was recovered following a July Fourth boat trip to an uninhabited island off the state’s Gulf Coast.

None of the three defendants is known to have any connection to Wells, his family, or the original boating group, according to charging documents.

The Death of Nolan Wells

Wells, who was Black, traveled on July 4 to an uninhabited island off Mississippi’s Gulf Coast with a group of white high school friends. He did not return to the mainland with the group that evening, and his body was discovered two days later off the island’s coast.

Authorities have not made any arrests or publicly named suspects in Wells’ death. An independent autopsy commissioned by his family returned a cause of death listed as “undetermined,” pending further investigation.

The Three Defendants

Joseph Alfredo Vasquez Dumarce of California was the first to be charged, on July 14. Prosecutors allege he sent a threatening message to Jackson County Chancery Court Judge Ashlee Cole on July 9 — a message that constituted a threat to mail a bomb to the judge’s office. Judge Cole subsequently posted a screenshot of the message and said she deactivated her account out of concern for her children’s safety.

The connection between Judge Cole and the Wells case is direct: her son was part of the July Fourth boat trip and was among the last people to see Wells, around 3 p.m. that day. Her son chose to remain on the island and return to the mainland later with a separate group of friends. As first reported by the Idaho Press, Judge Cole stated, “No one in our family is trying in any way to impede with the investigation by law enforcement or to otherwise hamper the family and law enforcement’s quest for answers.”

Michelle Francine Edwards of Ohio faces charges stemming from a series of bomb threats placed to the George County Chancery Clerk’s Office. Edwards allegedly called the office 21 times on July 23, reportedly telling staff “the clock is ticking.”

Edward James Porter of Illinois was charged in federal court for the Southern District of Mississippi following an alleged call on July 31. Porter is accused of threatening to kill an unnamed witness and that witness’s family. He allegedly also told a separate person in Mississippi that he would cut them up and place them in a suitcase. Prosecutors further allege Porter threatened two family members of Bart Edminston Jr., a 21-year-old who knew Wells and had provided assistance related to the boat used on July Fourth. One of those family members is listed as a witness in the Wells investigation.

Attempts to reach the three defendants for comment were unsuccessful, and it remains unclear whether any of them have retained attorneys.

A Case Drawing National Attention

The threats have come from individuals spread across Illinois, Ohio, and California — none of whom have any apparent connection to Wells, his family, or the people directly involved in the events of July Fourth. The charges underscore the broader pressure surrounding an investigation that has yet to yield any arrests or a definitive cause of death.

The case has drawn scrutiny partly because of its racial dimensions — Wells was the only Black member of the group — and because the circumstances of his absence and death have not been fully explained by authorities. His family’s decision to commission an independent autopsy reflects lingering questions about the official investigative process.

As the Mississippi investigation continues without a resolution, the federal threat charges represent a parallel legal proceeding that could complicate the environment around witnesses and court officials involved in the case. Idaho courts have been expanding public access to judicial records in recent years, and new public records search kiosks rolled out across all 44 Idaho counties reflect a broader national push for judicial transparency during high-profile proceedings.

No trial dates have been announced for any of the three defendants.