Singer d4vd Finally Arrested in Gruesome Killing of 14-Year-Old Girl — Seven Months After Her Body Was Found Decomposing Inside His Tesla
Rising alt-pop singer d4vd, real name David Anthony Burke, has finally been arrested for the horrific murder of a 14-year-old girl whose dismembered, decomposing body was discovered rotting inside the front trunk of his Tesla.
Los Angeles Police Department officials confirmed Thursday that the 20-year-old Houston-born singer was taken into custody without bail in connection with the September 2025 slaying of Celeste Rivas Hernandez.
The teen’s remains, wrapped in cadaver bags, partially frozen, decapitated, and hacked into pieces, were found by horrified first responders responding to reports of a foul odor emanating from an abandoned, dented Tesla towed from the Hollywood Hills.
NBC Los Angeles reported:
According to the filing in LA Superior Court to compel the appearance of an out-of-state witness, prosecutors wrote that Rivas Hernandez’s remains were discovered on Sept. 8 after a tow yard manager reported the smell of decay coming from the Tesla, which was registered to Burke.
[…]
The Texas judge rejected the efforts to block the enforcement of the demands for testimony Feb. 2, according to a transcript of a hearing.
The Burke witnesses were ordered to appear for testimony the week of Feb. 9, but because grand jury proceedings are secret until an indictment is produced, it’s not known if they ever appeared.
Citing the ongoing investigation the LA County Department of Medical Examiner removed public information about the case last November, which indicated at the time that the cause of Rivas Hernandez’s death was still undetermined.
Law enforcement sources told NBC4 Investigates last year that they believe Rivas Hernandez died in the spring of 2025, and that more than one person may have been involved in her death and the attempted disposal of her body.
[…]
LAPD detectives searched a home in the Hollywood Hills where Burke was said to be living and were seen removing bags and various items of potential evidence. The home was not far from the street where the Tesla was ticketed and impounded in early September.
According to multiple reports, the Tesla was registered directly to Burke. The car sat impounded for months.
Celeste was last seen in Southern California after reportedly telling family members she was going to meet Burke.
The victim’s mother had previously spoken out, raising questions about any possible relationship or grooming involving the young singer and the missing teen. Yet, in typical blue-city fashion, justice moved at a snail’s pace, seven full months of delays.
More from the KTLA,
The Tesla was parked on Bluebird Avenue, not far from a Hollywood Hills rental home that Burke was living in, before it was towed. Detectives later served a search warrant at the home where several pieces of evidence were seized.
On Nov. 18, 2025, LAPD sources told KTLA that Burke was considered a suspect in Hernandez’s death.
The teen had been missing from Lake Elsinore since April 2024, when she was just 13. The potential relationship between her and Burke has been a critical part of the investigation, with images that have surfaced online, which appear to show the two together.
The girl’s mother had told investigators that she had a boyfriend named David at the time of her disappearance.
The two reportedly have matching tattoos on their right index fingers with the letters “Shhh.” Friends in Burke’s circle also reportedly believed Hernandez was 19 years old.
WATCH:
BREAKING: Singer d4vd has been arrested in the murder of 14-year-old Celeste Hernandez after her decomposed body was found inside his Tesla.
Authorities say her remains were discovered in the vehicle after it had been towed, where it had been sitting abandoned for weeks.… pic.twitter.com/bHkR2DSjok
— Jack (@jackunheard) April 17, 2026
The post Singer d4vd Finally Arrested in Gruesome Killing of 14-Year-Old Girl — Seven Months After Her Body Was Found Decomposing Inside His Tesla appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.