Las Vegas Teen, 17, Reportedly Killed After 15 People Attacked Him Outside of High School

His father described him as a "courageous young man"

A father is remembering his teenage son as a "courageous young man" after he was reportedly killed following an attack by about 15 people outside of his high school.

Jonathan Lewis Jr. was allegedly attacked by a group near Rancho High School in Las Vegas on Nov. 1. He died in the hospital days later, his father, Jonathan Lewis Sr., shared on GoFundMe and told multiple outlets, including KLAS-TV and Las Vegas Review Journal.

The fundraiser — which has collected over $47,000 as of Monday — claimed "that one of [Jonathan's] smaller friends had something stolen by this group of 15 and they threw the small boy in the trash can and our son confronted them and he was attacked by them."

"Today at 11:26 a.m. my son was pronounced dead. He will always be so loved. As his dad I'll forever hold him in my heart, shine even brighter, love even more and work all my life to bring peace into this world," the father wrote in an update on Nov. 7.

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment on Monday.

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The Las Vegas Review Journal reported that Lewis was found at 2:05 p.m. on Nov. 1 near the intersection of Searles Avenue and North 21st Street. The outlet added that the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department has not publicly identified the victim.

The department's homicide unit is investigating the attack and no arrests have been made, per KLAS-TV.

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Speaking with the Review Journal, Lewis Sr. noted that the "whole family is in shock" over his son's death. At the time of the attack, his son lived in Las Vegas with his mother and had plans to move in with his dad in Austin, Texas.

As Lewis Sr. explained, a larger group attacked his son when two people "weren’t able to hurt him enough, and they all attacked him at once."

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The teen was described on his GoFundMe as "a kind, loving, gentle young man who has the heart of a champion and the brightest loving energy that attracts people to him with love."

"He's an aspiring artist, devoted big brother, and a fierce protector of love ones," his dad wrote prior to his death. "We are so grateful for all the love and community support that has poured in for our son and hope that the world will focus on all that love and compassion as a beacon of hope for human relations and place recognition upon how much stronger the love and the spirit of community is than the dark moments of violence."

The teen's father told KLAS-TV that he hopes his son's death opens up conversations on violence in Las Vegas involving young people.

“I hope there’s a way that can find forgiveness in their heart and find a way to be able to come to terms with what they’ve done,” he said, adding: “I think there’s just a failure of all of humanity to recognize that we need to be teaching our youth how to coexist.”

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