Celeste Rivas Hernandez Body Parts in D4vd’s Tesla
By SyndicatedNews | SNN.BZ
Shocking criminal case surrounding the death of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez has seen intensive legal developments as her family formally calls for the prosecution to seek the death penalty. The case centers on the horrific discovery of the teenager’s remains and has drawn international media attention due to the high profile of the accused individual. [1, 2
The suspect at the center of the investigation is 21-year-old musician David Anthony Burke, who performs under the stage name D4vd. Authorities arrested Burke in April 2026 at a residence in the Hollywood Hills after a multi-month investigation into the disappearance and subsequent death of the young girl, as reported in comprehensive coverage by ABC News. [1, 2]
The case began unfolding on September 8, 2025, when workers at an impound lot in Los Angeles reported a foul odor emanating from a seemingly abandoned 2023 Tesla Model Y. Upon inspecting the vehicle, which was registered to Burke, law enforcement officers discovered the severely decomposed and dismembered remains of Hernandez hidden inside heavy-duty bags within the vehicle’s front trunk, details later confirmed by NBC Los Angeles. [1, 2, 3]
Before the grim discovery, Hernandez had been reported missing by her family from her hometown of Lake Elsinore, California, in the spring of 2024 when she was just 13 years old. While initial internet rumors inaccurately suggested her parents were Ecuadorian immigrants who consented to an arrangement involving travel to London, official law enforcement records clarify that she was classified as a missing runaway. [1, 2]
Burke has since been charged with first-degree murder with special circumstances, continuous sexual abuse of a child under the age of 14, and unlawful mutilation of human remains. During court proceedings detailed by Yahoo News, prosecutors stated that Burke entered into an illegal relationship with the victim when she was 13 and allegedly killed her to prevent her from exposing the relationship. [1, 2]
Our review of the evidentiary hearings from July 2026 shows that prosecutors presented a significant timeline of digital and forensic evidence linking Burke to the crime. Text messages recovered from the devices showed a tumultuous communication history, including revelations that the teenager had become pregnant during the relationship and subsequently underwent an abortion before her disappearance. [1, 2]
Further testimony from Los Angeles police criminalists revealed that investigators uncovered evidence of blood and DNA matching the victim inside Burke’s residential garage. Court filings show that prosecutors tracked digital purchases made by Burke under an alias, which included a chainsaw, an inflatable pool, a body bag, and heavy-duty laundry bags delivered directly to his home address. [1, 2, 3]
A separate delivery order tracked by investigators showed a hardware store purchase for a shovel delivered around the estimated timeframe of the murder. Surveillance video and vehicle logs also showed Burke driving the Tesla shortly before he departed for a scheduled musical concert tour, leaving the vehicle abandoned in an upscale neighborhood. [1, 2]
The legal proceedings took an unexpected turn when Burke abruptly parted ways with his private legal team and requested to be represented by public defenders. The move sparked immediate outrage from the victim’s family and their legal representative, Patrick Steinfeld, who argued that taxpayers should not fund the defense of a wealthy social media star. [1]
The fallout from the arrest has completely halted Burke’s music career, which had previously garnered millions of followers on TikTok and a charting single. Following the initial discovery of the vehicle, promotional campaigns for his upcoming album deluxe editions were paused, and major corporate sponsors severed ties with the artist. [1, 2, 3]
As Burke remains held without bail after pleading not guilty to all charges, the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office continues to evaluate the final presentation of the case. The Hernandez family continues to advocate publicly for the maximum criminal penalties as the community awaits the official scheduling of the trial date. [1, 2]
Here is a chronology compiled from public official statements, charging documents as reported by news outlets, medical-examiner releases, and court coverage. Allegations from prosecutors are labeled as such. David Anthony Burke (D4vd) has pleaded not guilty.
Background
- Celeste Abigail Rivas Hernandez — Lake Elsinore, Riverside County, California. Family of Salvadoran immigrant parents. Would have turned 15 on September 7, 2025.
- David Anthony Burke (D4vd) — singer; prosecutors say they first met around January 2022 when she was 11. They allege a sexual relationship beginning November 2023 when she was 13 and he was 18. He has denied causing her death.
2024 — Repeated missing-person reports
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| ~Feb 14–15, 2024 | Family reports her missing the first time (Valentine’s Day period). Missing flyers circulated. Riverside County Sheriff’s Office later contacted Burke after his number appeared in her phone records; a welfare check was done at a West Hollywood / Hollywood Hills address tied to him. She returned home about Feb 19. |
| ~March 19, 2024 | Second missing-person report. She returned. |
| April 5, 2024 | Third and last official family missing-person report (about 9:29 p.m.). She was 13, in 7th grade. Described as last seen in gray pants, black sweater, hat, Hello Kitty sandals. Follow-up deputy visits continued in mid-April. This is the last reported disappearance from home; it is not the last evidence she was alive. |
| May 2024 | Some reporting says last confirmed contact with family. |
| Later 2024 | Neighbors and reporting said she was seen in the Lake Elsinore area at times after April. CNN and others later described photos and digital material placing her in Burke’s orbit into late 2024. A digital camera later recovered from a rented house associated with Burke reportedly had photos of both of them from late December 2024–early January 2025. |
Riverside County handled the runaway/missing reports. LAPD later took the homicide.
2025 — Last known life, alleged killing, discovery
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Sept 2024 / Jan 2, 2025 | Some public reporting (including Wikipedia summary of later investigation material) cites surveillance or digital evidence she was still alive. Exact official dates of last verified sighting before April 2025 remain uneven across sources. |
| April 22, 2025 | Prosecutors later cited texts from an argument; they say she threatened to disclose the relationship and damage his career (album release was days away). |
| April 23, 2025 | Prosecution theory of last time seen alive and date of killing. They allege he sent an Uber from Lake Elsinore to his Hollywood Hills home that evening and that she was not heard from again. Charging language: killed “on or about” April 23 with a sharp instrument. Burke’s defense disputes that he caused the death. |
| April 25, 2025 | Debut album Withered released. He continued promotional activity and touring. |
| ~May 5, 2025 | Some charging summaries allege mutilation of remains on or about this date (dismemberment after death). |
| Late July 2025 | Tesla associated with Burke reported parked unused / dirty on Bluebird Avenue area (Hollywood Hills). |
| Sept 8, 2025 | Body discovered. Tow-yard staff in Los Angeles report a foul odor. LAPD opens the front trunk (“frunk”) of a 2023 Tesla Model Y registered to Burke. Remains in bags; death pronounced by an LAPD detective at ~11:00. One day after she would have turned 15. Car had been towed after sitting for weeks. Burke was on tour (performed Minneapolis that night per some timelines). |
| Sept 10, 2025 | Deputy medical examiner examines the remains at the DME Forensic Science Center. Case 2025-14252. |
| Sept 16–17, 2025 | Remains identified as Celeste (dental comparison). Search warrant activity reported. |
| Sept 15 / Nov 21, 2025 | LAPD first requests, then obtains a court security hold blocking public release of DME findings. |
| Dec 9, 2025 | DME determines cause and manner: multiple penetrating injuries by object(s); homicide. Report remains sealed. |
2026 — Arrest, charges, autopsy release, hearing
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Feb 25, 2026 | Court filings publicly confirm he is a target of the murder investigation. |
| April 16, 2026 | Arrested in Hollywood Hills; held without bail. |
| April 20, 2026 | Charged with first-degree murder (special circumstances alleged: lying in wait / financial gain / to conceal a crime), continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14, and mutilation of human remains. Pleads not guilty. |
| April 22, 2026 | DME releases cause/manner and the 26-page autopsy after the hold is lifted. |
| July 21–27, 2026 | Preliminary hearing (Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo). Testimony includes autopsy doctor Grant Ho, texts, photos, Amazon/alias purchases, Tesla/phone data. Judge finds probable cause and holds him to answer on all counts and special circumstances. Held without bail. |
| Aug 31, 2026 | Scheduled post-prelim arraignment. Trial date not set in the coverage reviewed; death-penalty decision by the DA still pending in later reports. |
Autopsy snapshot (publicly reported)
Cause: multiple penetrating injuries (two torso wounds described as possible sharp-force: abdomen/liver and left chest/ribs). Manner: homicide. Dismemberment of limbs after death; two left-hand fingers missing. Severe decomposition limited timing, eye color, and some wound interpretation. Low-level ethanol in liver tissue; not treated as contributory. Identification by dental radiographs. Tattoo “Shhh….” noted on a finger.
Gaps that remain public
- Exact last independent sighting between mid-2024 and April 23, 2025 is not fully pinned down in open reporting.
- No murder weapon has been publicly identified as recovered.
- Time of death is still “unknown” on the DME report; the examiner testified death was at least weeks before discovery and “potentially” months.
- Burke remains presumed innocent; the case is pretrial.
