Singer D4vd Arrested on Suspicion of Murder in Teen's Death

Los Angeles police have arrested singer D4vd, whose legal name is David Burke, on suspicion of murdering 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez. The teenager's decomposed body was discovered in September 2025 inside a Tesla registered to Burke, which had been towed from the Hollywood Hills after being left seemingly abandoned.

Burke, a 21-year-old Houston-born alt-pop artist, is currently being held without bail. His defense attorneys, Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski, and Regina Peter, stated, "Let us be clear — the actual evidence in this case will show that David Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez and he was not the cause of her death."

The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office is reviewing the case to determine whether sufficient evidence exists to file formal charges. Burke had been under investigation by an LA County grand jury regarding Hernandez's death, a probe that became public in February 2026 when his family contested subpoenas in a Texas court.

Hernandez was reported missing in 2024 from Lake Elsinore, approximately 70 miles southeast of Los Angeles. Her body was found in a Tesla Model Y registered to Burke at his family's Texas address. The vehicle had been towed from a Hollywood Hills neighborhood where it had been parked for weeks. Investigators discovered a cadaver bag containing a decomposed head and torso, with severed limbs found in a second bag beneath the first. The cause of death has not been publicly disclosed.

D4vd gained popularity in 2022 with his TikTok hit "Romantic Homicide," leading to a record deal with Darkroom and Interscope Records. He released his debut EP "Petals to Thorns" in 2023 and was on tour supporting his first full-length album, "Withered," when Hernandez's body was discovered. Subsequently, the remaining North American shows and a European tour were canceled.