On April 16, 2026, the singer D4vd was arrested and taken into custody for the murder of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez. The 21-year-old, whose real name is David Anthony Burke, was charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of the young girl.
D4vd pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. His attorneys — Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski and Regina Peter — are fighting to prove his innocence in the case. In a statement, they said,
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 young teen girl was reported missing from her home in Lake Elsinore, California, various times in early 2024. The earliest report of her going missing was from mid-February. This was followed by another report around March 19 and finally the latest report of her disappearance in April.
The last time Hernandez was reported to be seen alive was April 23, 2025. The artist had allegedly invited her to his home in the Hollywood Hills.
On Sept. 8, 2025, one day after what would have been Hernandez’s 15th birthday, her body was discovered in the trunk of an abandoned Tesla. The car, which was registered in D4vd’s name, was left near his residence in the Hollywood Hills. Soon, the vehicle was taken to a nearby tow yard. The authorities were later notified of a foul smell protruding from the Tesla.
When law enforcement arrived on the scene, Hernandez’s body was found severely dismembered and decomposed. Her head and torso were cut off and found in a bag.
Due to the state of her body parts, it is said to be believed that she could have been dead for several weeks before she was discovered.
During this time D4vd had been gaining tremendous popularity. He initially went viral on the social media app TikTok for his hit song “Romantic Homicide.” Then, in 2023, he released two EPs — “Petals to Thorns” and “The Lost Petals.” His debut album “Withered” was released on April 25, 2025.
On April 24, 2025, tickets for D4vd’s “Withered” tour went live. Later that year his world tour kicked off on Aug. 5, 2025, in Del Mar, California. The investigation concerning the discovery of Celeste Rivas Hernandez’s body was happening in the midst of his tour. As a result, on Sept. 19, 2025 D4vd canceled the remainder of his world tour.
During their time together, it is alleged that D4vd sexually abused Hernandez for a prolonged period of time starting from when she was 13 years old.
Recently, new evidence has been uncovered during the height of D4vd’s trial. A “significant amount of child pornography” was found on his phone. A prosecutor named Beth Silverman stated that the images of child pornography were discovered on the singer’s iCloud storage as police were conducting a search warrant of his phone.
Prosecutors are hoping that this new discovery in the midst of the case will help strengthen their case against the artist.
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