Federal officials say they believe remains found in a Gastonia highway are that of 6-year-old Maddox Ritch The days-long search for a missing 6-year-old boy in North Carolina ended in tragedy on Thursday when officials found what they believed to be the child’s body in a creek just one mile from the park where he disappeared. Gastonia police confirmed the news to PEOPLE in a statement, revealing that a body believed to be that of the 6-year-old was found around 1 p.m. near a highway in Gastonia. The body will be identified by the medical examiner’s office. Maddox’s parents, Ian and Carrie Ritch, have been notified of the discovery. Get push notifications with news, features and more. “The chief and I saw Maddox and it is absolutely amazing that he was found,” FBI agent Jason Kaplan said during a Thursday press conference of “how camouflaged” the body was. “It was extremely difficult to see him even when we were standing right next to him. He was in the creek, in water. Partially underwater.” Kaplan said it is “too early” to say whether foul play is suspected. Although a medical examiner will confirm the identity of the remains, Kaplan said it is “reasonable to say that it’s [Maddox]. maddox-ritch-2 Credit: Gastonia Police Department Maddox, who has autism and limited verbal skills, was walking with his father and another adult at the park around 1:30 p.m. local time on Saturday when he took off running. More than a dozen agencies participated in the search, even enlisting the help of divers to search the lake. The remains were found in about two or three feet of water in Long Creek, just one mile east of Gastonia’s Rankin Lake Park. Gastonia fire chief Phillip Welch said Maddox could not have been swept into the creek from the lake due to a screen in the discharge area. Welch added that it is possible Maddox walked under fencing around the park to get to the creek. It is unclear how he got into the creek. “You would not believe the number of times we’d been over and over the same areas,” Welch said, noting that the area Maddox was found had been searched “numerous” timed. “We were searching on the presumption that he could have moved around. We had new eyes every day in the same areas.” IR1 Ian (left) and Maddox Ritch | Credit: Courtesy Ian Ritch Maddox’ s father Ian Ritch previously told PEOPLE that he and his friend were walking with Maddox near the lake that afternoon when the playful boy took off running behind a jogger. It was common for Maddox to run around, so Ian allowed the boy to jog ahead for fun, he said. But when Maddox began running faster, Ian said he took off after him and wasn’t able to catch up with his son before losing sight of the boy. He told PEOPLE that he began to lose hope that search teams would find the boy okay. “I was thinking he was lost in the woods, now I’m not so sure,” Ian told PEOPLE on Tuesday. “They’ve been looking for days and haven’t found anything. I’m starting to worry. It’s been too long. They had so many search and rescue [teams] that they should have found him by now.” maddox-ritch-1 Credit: FBI Kaplan said the investigation is not over and authorities are looking to speak with everyone who was at the park that day. They are working to determine how Maddox got into the lake and how he died. Authorities offered a $10,000 reward for Maddox’s recovery. City officials confirmed to PEOPLE that both Carrie and Ian were cooperating with police in the investigation. As the search continued, some questioned Ian’s account of the fateful day. But the grieving father said he did all he could to find his son. “I was terrified. I didn’t know which direction he went, so I looked as hard as I could, I went different ways and everything,” Ian said in the day’s before the tragic discovery. “I tried to find him. People are making it out like I did something to him. I would never hurt my little boy. I love him to death and I just want him back.” On Tuesday, Maddox’s mother, Carrie Ritch, spoke through tears at a press conference as she pleaded for help to find her son.<doc-sep>A body believed to be that of a 6-year-old boy with special needs who went missing in North Carolina over the weekend was found Thursday in a creek near the park where he was last seen, authorities said. Gastonia Police Chief Robert Helton said at a Thursday afternoon news conference that he was "heartbroken" over the grim discovery five days after Maddox Ritch disappeared. "This is not the end that we hoped for," Helton told reporters, fighting back tears. "I've lost a lot of sleep this week worrying about Maddox." Authorities have notified the parents of the boy, FBI special agent Jason Kaplan said at a news conference on Thursday afternoon. Ritch, who has autism and is nonverbal, went missing at Rankin Lake Park in Gastonia on Saturday, police have said. He was last seen by his father and another adult. "The investigation is not over," Kaplan told reporters, adding that law enforcement officials still want to speak with people who were in the park. The body was found partially submerged in the creek by a member of a team of 15 searchers, Gastonia fire chief Phil Welch said at the news conference. The depth of the creek, located more than a mile east of the park, was about two to three feet, Kaplan told reporters. "There is no sense of accomplishment here today," Welch said. "There is grieving down at our command post." With heavy hearts we announce a body believed to be 6-year-old Maddox Ritch was found at approximately 1 p.m. off of Marietta Street/Old Dallas Highway in Gastonia. Maddox’s parents have been notified of the discovery. The investigation is ongoing. — FBI Charlotte (@FBICharlotte) September 27, 2018 The FBI and two dozen agencies had worked to locate him, with around 100 people scouring more than 1,400 acres in and around the park over the weekend. The identification of the body will be done by the medical examiner's office, Gastonia police said in an statement.<doc-sep>Maddox Ritch, who has autism and does not talk, went missing in a park Saturday. A body believed to be missing boy Maddox Ritch was found on Thursday, days after the 6-year-old vanished in broad daylight in a North Carolina park, leaving the community "heartbroken," the local police chief said Thursday. Maddox, who has autism and does not talk, was at Rankin Lake Park in Gastonia with his father, Ian Ritch, and another adult when he disappeared Saturday. The body believed to be Maddox was found partially underwater in a creek Thursday about 1 mile from the park, officials said. His body was camouflaged and in an area that had been searched many times this week, officials said. "Maddox Ritch was a beautiful young man," Gastonia Police Chief Robert Helton said, holding back tears at a news conference Thursday. Helton added that "a lot of unanswered questions" remains. Authorities want to hear from everyone who was at the park that day as they piece together what happened, including how Maddox went from the park to the creek, how Maddox died and if foul play was involved, FBI officials said. Ian Ritch had said his son had started sprinting roughly 25 to 30 feet ahead of him before the little boy ran out of sight. "As soon as I got to the point where I couldn’t see him anymore, I started panicking," he said this week. The disappearance sparked a massive search by local, state and federal investigators, who scoured the land with police dogs, searched dumpsters, waded through the park's lake using sonar and divers and scanned the area with helicopters and drones, police said. Authorities also recorded messages from Maddox's parents and played those messages in the woods in the hopes that their voices would persuade him to come out if he was there. "Maddox is my whole world and my reason for living," his mother, Carrie Ritch, said at a press conference Tuesday. "I want my baby back in my arms," she said through tears.<doc-sep>
— Authorities said a body believed to be that of a missing 6-year-old Gastonia boy was found Thursday afternoon following an extensive search. Maddox Ritch was with his father, Ian Ritch, and another adult at Rankin Lake Park on Saturday when he ran ahead and vanished, police said. Crews discovered the body partially underwater at about 1 p.m. off Marietta Street/Old Dallas Highway, a little over one mile outside of the park, authorities said. During a news conference on Thursday afternoon, Gastonia Fire Chief Phil Welch said the area where the body was found had been searched numerous times by drone, ATV and foot patrol. "There is not a sense of accomplishment here today. There is grieving," Welch said. Maddox's parents have been notified of the discovery by law enforcement. During a news conference on Wednesday, Ian Ritch said that Maddox initially took off a little ways ahead, maybe "25 to 30 feet" before he went into a "major sprint." "I started worrying once I could not see him anyone," Ritch said. Ritch said he felt guilty for letting his son get so far ahead of him, but said Maddox loves to run. "It's torture. I just want my little boy back home. I want to give him a big hug as soon as I see him," Ritch said. Ritch, who has diabetes, said he has some trouble running but took off after his son. "He looked back at me and laughed like he normally does ... he slowed down a little then he paced himself back up," he said. Carrie Ritch, Maddox's mother, gave a brief statement during a news conference on Tuesday. "Maddox is my whole world and my reason for living," Carrie Ritch said. "His smile is so contagious, and his laughter is so precious." Authorities said everyone in Maddox's family was cooperating with the investigation, but that a lot of unanswered questions remain. "It is too early to suspect foul play," FBI Supervisor Jason Kaplan said. Kaplan said they still want to know where Maddox entered the water, but he would not say if there was trauma to his body, or if he was wearing the clothes he was last seen in. Maddox was autistic and nonverbal, which made the search for him even more difficult, authorities said. The FBI is offering a $10,000 reward for information in his disappearance. Authorities are urging anyone who was at the park to call 704-869-1075.