Heriberto Reyes was viciously attacked on Friday at Roosevelt Park in East San Jose. Police call the park a known gang hangout.
Officials with the school district call the death of the 14-year-old a loss to the community. Police say it was gang-related.
Investigators say most of those who witnessed the incident left the scene before police arrived. Reyes was transported to the hospital, where he remained through the weekend. He later died from his injuries.
"We believe the case is gang motivated; Roosevelt Park is an area known for a high-level of criminal street gang activity," San Jose Police Sgt. Jason Dwyer said.
Police will not say if they were able to communicate with the victim or if he was able to identify his attackers, but police said investigators are actively following leads.
Reyes attended Bernal Intermediate School in San Jose. Officials from the Oak Grove School District are calling his death a tragedy.
"Anytime that you have a young person that's taken away, it's just a tragedy for our whole community," district spokesperson Dennis Hawkins said.
It is not clear how many suspects were involved or how many people were at the park, but police did confirm that no weapons were used.
Anyone with information is asked to contact San Jose police.
