On the evening of August 15, 2024, Michael Lionel Wells, 45, known as Big Mike, was found unresponsive on Pleasant Hill Lane in the Odena community of Sylacauga, Alabama. Emergency responders pronounced him dead at the scene; he had sustained fatal gunshot wounds. The Talladega County Sheriff’s Office opened a homicide investigation that remains active and ongoing.

Wells was a well-known local figure — a father to fifteen children and remembered as a coach, mentor, and community leader. Central Alabama CrimeStoppers has offered a cash reward for information leading to an arrest, and authorities have said tipsters may remain anonymous. No arrests or public identifications of suspects have been announced, and the motive remains unclear.

If anyone in Sylacauga remembers seeing or hearing anything relevant on or around August 15, 2024, please come forward with information that might help the investigation.