Inside the Case Against D4vd: What Prosecutors Claim Happened

Singer David Anthony Burke has pleaded not guilty to a capital murder charge in connection with the death of Celeste Rivas Hernandez, 14, whose body was discovered inside the front trunk of his Tesla in 2025. Authorities say they have identified a possible motive in the case.

According to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, “Celeste was just a child, under 14 years old, when David Burke allegedly engaged in repeated lewd and lascivious s-xual relations with her.”

DA Nathan Hochman added, “But Burke’s actions did not allegedly stop there.” According to Hochman, the singer killed the girl after she threatened to expose his crimes. “When she threatened to expose his criminal conduct and devastate his musical career, Burke allegedly murdered her, cut up her body and stuffed her body in two bags that were placed in the front trunk of his car,” said the DA.

Hochman added, “This horrific and gruesome murder committed by the charged s-xual predator is shocking and appalling. To Celeste’s loved ones, we will get the justice you seek and deserve.”

The DA also added that the teenager’s body was inside the trunk for at least four months before it was discovered in a tow yard on September 8, 2025. The incident unfolded after she met the singer last year.

According to a criminal complaint, Hernandez ran away from her family’s Riverside County home and was invited to Burke’s residence at Hollywood Hills on April 23. Her family did not hear from her again.

Just five months later, her decomposed and dismembered remains were found inside two bags in the front trunk of a Tesla that was registered to D4vd. He has been charged with one count each of murder, continuous s-xual abuse of a child under the age of 14, and unlawful mutilation of human remains.

The criminal complaint also included special circumstance allegations that the singer personally used a deadly and dangerous weapon to kill her, as well as allegations of murder of a witness, murder for financial gain and lying in wait.

On Monday, April 20, D4vd pleaded not guilty to the charges during an arraignment hearing at the Foltz Criminal Justice Center. DA Hochman said during a press conference, “In this particular case, as the evidence will come out in court, the witness to the investigation was Celeste, and the investigation was into the lewd and lascivious s-xual acts committed by Mr. Burke.”

Hochman added, “I am a parent of three children. And a parent’s nightmare is a situation where your daughter goes out one night and never comes back.”

The teenager’s family was reportedly in attendance when the singer pleaded not guilty to her murder.