Tragic news as authorities in Jersey City, New Jersey, claim Jeremiah Grant, a former jump rope champion, was hit and killed by a Jeep while walking home from a fundraiser on Saturday afternoon (October 28).

The 8-year-old, who once appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, was struck near Christopher Columbus Drive and Grove Street at around 4:30 p.m. and was rushed to a nearby hospital where he would be pronounced dead a short time later.

There was at least one witness to the tragic incident. Jose Pimentel told authorities the driver told him he thought he had hit a backpack.

“I jumped on the street, went after the car,” Pimentel said to authorities. “I was able to stop him and let him know he had to stop because he hit somebody. He said he thought he went over a book bag. He didn’t notice that he had hit a person.”

The 60-year-old driver did ultimately remain at the scene until law enforcement arrived and no charges have yet been filed.

Grant was a member of the Honey Bees, a champion double-dutch jump roping group who made an appearance on The Tonight Show. Grant was the only boy in the collective.

A YouCaring page has been set up for Grant’s family. $4,105 of the $20,000 goal has been raised as of this morning, with 100 percent of the money going “directly to his family.”

See Jeremiah Grant’s appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon below.