Singer-songwriter d4vd, whose legal name is David Anthony Burke, has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose dismembered body was found in a Tesla registered to Burke last year, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman announced. Burke, 21, was charged with first-degree murder with special circumstances, lewd and lascivious acts with an individual under 14, and mutilating a body.
Hochman said the charges include the most serious brought by the DA’s office. Charging documents allege Burke engaged in continuous sexual abuse beginning around September 2023, the month Rivas turned 13. Prosecutors say when Rivas threatened to expose his conduct and damage his music career, Burke allegedly murdered her, dismembered her body, placed parts in two bags and put them in the front trunk of his car. The complaint alleges the dismembered remains sat in the car for months and were discovered in September 2025.
The complaint includes special-circumstance allegations of lying in wait, committing the crime for financial gain and murdering a witness, as well as an allegation that Burke personally used a deadly and dangerous weapon, a sharp instrument, in April 2025. Hochman said the first-degree murder charge could carry life without parole or the death penalty; a decision on seeking capital punishment will be made later.
Burke was arrested last week after becoming the target of a grand jury investigation. He appeared in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom, where his attorneys entered a not guilty plea on his behalf and said they believe evidence will show Burke did not kill Rivas. Defense counsel requested a preliminary hearing within 10 days. Burke remains jailed without bail and is due back in court on Thursday. CBS LA reached out to Burke’s attorneys for comment.
Rivas’s remains were discovered Sept. 8, 2025, after reports of a foul smell at a Hollywood tow yard. Authorities found a decomposed head and torso inside a cadaver bag in the Tesla and other dismembered parts in a separate bag. The condition of the remains delayed the medical examiner’s ability to determine cause of death, and investigators said crucial evidence degraded as decomposition progressed.
The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said Rivas was reported missing from Lake Elsinore a year before prosecutors believe she was killed; a missing-person flyer noted she was last seen April 5, 2024. Hochman said Rivas was at Burke’s Hollywood Hills home on April 23, 2025, “at his invitation,” and LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said the teen was in a sexual relationship with Burke.
McDonnell acknowledged criticism of the department’s handling of the case and said his duty is to deliver justice, not fuel speculation. Hochman said prosecutors will rely on witness testimony, documents and digital and forensic evidence in the absence of an eyewitness account.
Burke was on the “d4vd Withered 2025 World Tour” when Rivas’s identity was released; he canceled a Seattle concert the day she was identified and subsequently canceled additional shows. A statement from Burke’s family, shared by their attorney, said they were “not surprised but are terribly disappointed” that charges were filed and that they support him.
Hochman urged anyone with information about the case to come forward.