Singer D4vd was arrested on April 16, 2026, on suspicion of murder in connection with the death of Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose remains were found in his Tesla in September 2025.
How the investigation led to the arrest
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the remains discovered in the front trunk of D4vd’s impounded Tesla as those of Celeste Rivas Hernandez on September 8, 2025. Investigators had previously established that Rivas was last seen in Lake Elsinore in April 2024 and last contacted her family in May 2024, after multiple reported runaway incidents. Surveillance footage and digital evidence later confirmed she was alive in September 2024 and January 2025, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office.
What is known about the victim
Celeste Abigail Rivas Hernandez was a 14-year-old first-generation daughter of immigrant parents from El Salvador who lived in Lake Elsinore, California, approximately 75 miles from where her body was found. Neighbors recalled her frequent visits to a local corner store to buy candy and soda, as reported by the Los Angeles Times. She had been entered into the missing person database as a runaway from her home on Jamieson Street following her disappearance in April 2024.
For more on this story, see Singer D4vd Arrested for Murder of 14-Year-Old Found in Tesla.
Background on the suspect
David Anthony Burke, known professionally as D4vd, is an American singer-songwriter recognized for songs including “Romantic Homicide” and “Here With Me.” He released the album Withered in 2025 and had announced a world tour spanning North America and Europe prior to his arrest. Photographs allegedly showing Burke and Rivas together surfaced after her remains were identified, and Rivas’s mother stated her daughter had a boyfriend named “David.”
Why was D4vd arrested now?
D4vd was arrested on April 16, 2026, on suspicion of murder following forensic and investigative work that linked him to the case after the identification of Rivas’s remains in his vehicle.
What happens next in the legal process?
The source does not specify upcoming court dates or charges, but D4vd remains in custody as the investigation continues under the jurisdiction of Los Angeles authorities.