Lieutenant Benjamin Wells has been serving the people of Horry County, South Carolina for nearly 25 years. His journey into digital forensics began accidentally when an investigation needed data from a cell phone. Handed a Cellebrite UFED (now part of Inseyets), he was told to “take this and run with it.”   

So, he did. 

What started as a one-man operation in a small closet in the county jail has blossomed into a full-fledged, multi-agency digital forensics lab. Today, Lt. Wells and his team support 15 municipalities, tackling a caseload that has exploded to process more than 1,100 devices a year. At the heart of this transformation is a deep partnership with Cellebrite, whose solutions have become indispensable in the pursuit of justice. 

The Challenge: An Overwhelming Digital Tide 

Like many agencies, the Horry County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) was beginning to see a massive increase of digital evidence. The number of devices seized in investigations, particularly in Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) cases, was growing exponentially. 

As Lt. Wells looks back, he remembers thinking, “this is going to be the future of policing. A lot of investigations will involve digital evidence… Eventually, this is going to be policing.” 

As a lone examiner for years, Lt. Wells faced significant challenges. The sheer volume of phones, computers, hard drives and SD cards created a backlog, delaying investigations and ultimately justice. The challenge was clear: HCSO needed a way to process more evidence, faster and more effectively, not just in the lab but also in the field. 

“Without Cellebrite, it would be impossible to even work the [ICAC] cases.”  

– Lt. Benjamin Wells, Horry County Sheriff’s Office 

The Solution: A Modern, Mobile, AI-Powered Lab 

HCSO turned to Cellebrite’s comprehensive digital investigation platform, including Cellebrite Inseyets for advanced access, powerful analytics and workflow automation. This suite of solutions provided the foundation for a modern digital forensics strategy. Recognizing that critical evidence is often discovered on scene, particularly in ICAC investigations, Lt. Wells pioneered a mobile forensics lab built into a Suburban. This allows HCSO to perform extractions and previews in the field, a capability essential to arresting potential child predators. 

“Being able to take Cellebrite with us on scene is an amazing function,” said Lt. Wells. “Cellebrite is the only one that has that capability to be able to do things on scene. That doesn’t give them a chance to go run. It doesn’t give them a chance to reoffend. I would even say it saved lives.” 

A Love Triangle Unraveled: An AI-Powered Murder Investigation 

When a mother of four was accused of killing the children’s father, also her ex-boyfriend, digital evidence was pivotal in painting a picture of her premeditation.  Digital evidence showed Jackson, who was having an affair with a former deputy coroner at the time, tried to cover her tracks by using anonymous texting apps and uploading images directly from her phone’s camera to a website, bypassing the camera roll. The deputy coroner ended up pleading guilty to participating in the crime and testified against his former lover at trial telling a jury that she pulled the trigger and forced him to dispose of the body. 

Wells explained it was the AI-powered media classification within Cellebrite Inseyets that broke the case open. The software identified cached images of text messages—which Jackson took with her phone’s camera—as “screenshots.” 

“That is one way I found the pictures,” Lt. Wells explained. This crucial link allowed him to uncover all the hidden communications, revealing the plot and securing a life sentence. The AI capabilities were a force multiplier. “The media classification greatly reduced my workload,” Lt. Wells added. “I was able to be able to move through things faster, find evidence faster and get things to the prosecutor in a timely manner.” 

Jackson is currently serving a life sentence for the murder of her four children’s father.  

Seeking Truth: An Exoneration and a Stolen Future Returned 

Cellebrite’s solutions are not just for convicting the guilty; they are equally powerful in clearing the innocent. In one sexual assault case, a college football player’s career and freedom were on the line. The accuser’s story seemed convincing, and the suspect’s apologetic texts appeared to confirm his guilt. 

However, a closer look into the accuser’s phone with Cellebrite Inseyets.PA revealed the truth. Lt. Wells uncovered deleted text messages showing the accuser and the suspect’s ex-girlfriend had plotted the entire event as a revenge setup. “You have somebody like this that takes away from all the realistic victims that need our help, that need us,” Lt. Wells said. “That definitely takes away from all the legitimate victims out there that need our help.”  

The investigation not only exonerated the football player but also revealed the accuser had done the same thing to another man in Virginia, leading to his release from jail. 

For Lt. Wells and the Horry County Sheriff’s Office, digital forensics is more than a job; it’s a calling. With Cellebrite as a trusted partner, they are equipped to handle the challenges of modern crime, delivering justice for victims, protecting the innocent and making their community a safer place. 

“Once you save one child and once you see that child is safe, it’s worth everything that I got to go through. I love my job.” – Lt. Benjamin Wells, Horry County Sheriff’s Office 

A Key to Success: Continuous Training 

Training isn’t something Lt. Wells considers ‘nice to have’ he classifies it as a necessity. “A lot of people think you can push a button, and it comes across, that’s not the case. This takes intense training.” One example of the importance of training came during a child exploitation investigation. Lt. Wells credits his Cellebrite Advanced Smartphone Analysis (CASA) for Inseyets certification with helping him locate data that led to him locating a three-year-old victim. 

With the field of digital forensics constantly changing, he said getting certified once isn’t enough. “It also requires continuations of learning how different devices are storing data, transmitting data and it’s never ending. Just because you get certified, don’t stop. You need to keep going.” 

Going hand-in-hand with training is building a network, “nobody knows it all,” he said. “Having that network of forensic examiners to fall back on, to ask questions to, that is one of the biggest things.”