A 13-year-old boy from the town of Venice, Utah, has died following what his family have described as a "tragic accident" on their farm.
Maximus Knight was tragically found unresponsive at his family's Knights Corn Maze and Pumpkin Patch farm on Saturday, the New York Post reports.
The teenager had been helping to clean up at the family attraction, but soon went missing.
The Sevier County Sheriff’s Office says that his family found Maximus soon after. Tragically, he had no pulse, was not breathing, and was found with the rope of a tetherball pole around his neck, per Fox 13.
Emergency dispatchers provided CPR instructions to those on the scene as paramedics were dispatched to the fame. Despite the paramedics being able to restore Maximus' pulse, the teen died shortly after he was airlifted to a medical facility in Salt Lake City, after first being rushed to a local hospital.
Sevier County Sheriff Nathan Curtis has stated that there is currently no indication of foul play or suspicious activity surrounding Maximus' death, and that the teen is believed to have passed away following a tragic accident.
The family's Knights Corn Maze and Pumpkin Patch is located on a farm roughly 160 miles south of Salt Lake City.
In a statement to PEOPLE, Maximus' aunt, Jill Christianson, said: "Our hearts are broken, he was so bright, so beautiful, a most perfect example of kindness & service to his fellow friends and family. He was adventure & risk, he was joy & sweetness, he was tease & laughter, he was bravery & strength. He was love."
Another of Maximus' aunts, Laurie Ann Thor, has also launched a GoFundMe for the teen's family.
On the page, she writes: "Maximus was a beautiful, sweet and loving child who brought so much joy to his family and to his community," wrote Laurie Ann Thor in the fundraiser description. “The youngest of his family, Maximus made every effort to impress his big brothers and care for those around him. Our hearts are broken as we struggle to make sense of this tragedy. We will forever mourn his passing.”
As of this writing, over $25,000 has been raised to help the family cover medical and funeral expenses.
Others to pay tribute to Maximus include his school friend, Treyton, who told ABC4: "He would always stick up for others if anyone was talking bad about us. He would always stand up for us … he wasn’t scared to put people in their place."
The teen's obituary states that Maximus - who was the fifth child of parents Lee and April Knight - enjoyed wrestling and driving a tractor in the corn maze.
"[Maximus] delighted in outings with his family at a very early age, including even boating as a baby," it adds. "He always had a strong bond with his mother and is the best cuddler in his family."
Our thoughts go out to Knight's family, friends, and loved ones at this time.
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