Crime N.M. Boy, 6, Who Wanted to Be Firefighter Is Fatally Mauled After Wandering into Dog Enclosure A preliminary investigation has described the incident as an accident By Elaine Aradillas Elaine Aradillas Elaine Aradillas is a former senior staff writer PEOPLE. She left PEOPLE in 2023. People Editorial Guidelines Published on December 1, 2021 04:38PM EST Photo: Facebook A celebration of a 6-year-old boy's life was held on Saturday after he was attacked by a pack of dogs in New Mexico, say officials, according to the Las Cruces Sun News. Shortly before 10 a.m. on Nov. 22, Avery Dunphy was playing outside with his grandfather when he stepped away for "no more than 10 minutes," according to a police report obtained by the newspaper. Avery apparently wandered into a caged area of his grandparents' property where they fostered dogs, the report said. "According to the police report, the boy suffered severe wounds from the dogs, including cuts in his neck and chest," the paper reported. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. The boy was airlifted to a hospital in El Paso, Texas, where he died shortly after arriving, the sheriff told the paper. Avery's father told TV station KFOX14 that his son had dreams of being a fireman. On Saturday, the community gathered at Real Life Church and celebrated his life, including the Las Cruces Fire Department, the station reported. Avery would've "wanted everyone there," a family member told TV station KVIA. The member added that his "life needs to be celebrated and not to have died in vain." The paper reported that preliminary information suggested that the incident was an accident.