Singer D4vd charged with murder of 14-year-old girl
FILE-D4vd performs during the 2025 Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival Weekend 2 - Day 1 on April 18, 2025 in Indio, California. (Photo by Timothy Norris/Getty Images for Coachella)
Singer D4vd has been charged with the murder of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez. In September 2025, the victim’s body was found dismembered and decomposed in the entertainer’s Tesla.
Citing the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, The Associated Press reported that the 21-year-old singer, whose real name is David Burke, was charged with first-degree murder; lewd and lascivious acts with an individual under 14; and mutilating a body in the murder of Celeste Rivas Hernandez. In 2024, the girl was reported missing by her family, when she was 13. Police said she was 14 when she died.
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According to the AP, the murder charges against Burke included special circumstances — lying in wait, committing crime for financial gain, and murdering the witness in an investigation — that could carry the death penalty. Prosecutors haven’t announced whether they will seek it.
What happened in the D4vd case?
The backstory:
Celeste Rivas Hernandez’s body was located inside a Tesla that was towed from the Hollywood Hills on Sept. 8, 2025.
Hernandez’s family reported her missing from her hometown of Lake Elsinore, California, roughly 70 miles southeast of Los Angeles.
RELATED: D4vd arrested in connection to murder of Celeste Rivas Hernandez
According to The Associated Press, police didn’t name David Burke as a suspect until he was arrested. In a statement from his attorneys obtained by the AP, Burke’s legal representation said they "will vigorously defend David’s innocence," which was the first time they weighed in publicly.
Burke was under investigation by an LA County grand jury looking into the girl’s death. The investigation was officially secret, and was revealed in February 2025 when his mother, father and brother objected in a Texas court to subpoenas demanding they testify.
A 2023 Tesla Model Y was registered in the entertainer’s name at the Texas address of his subpoenaed relatives, the AP noted, referencing court filings from prosecutors in the case.
The vehicle was towed from a Hollywood Hills neighborhood where it was sitting as though it was vacant. According to court documents, authorities searching the Tesla in a tow yard located a cadaver bag "covered with insects and a strong odor of decay." Police partially unzipped a bag and found a head and torso.
When Hernandez's body was found, D4vd continued his United States tour, but when reports of his alleged involvement circulated, the singer canceled the final two shows and a European tour that was scheduled to follow.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by The Associated Press, which cites court documents from the D4vd case. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.