The singer-songwriter known as D4vd was arrested Thursday in the murder of Celeste Rivas Hernandez, the teenager whose decomposed remains were found in trunk of the singer’s abandoned Tesla two days after he performed in Chicago at the Salt Shed, multiple law enforcement sources told NBC4 Investigates.
The development in the months-long investigation comes after D4vd, a 21-year-old TikTok star whose legal name is David Burke, was identified by authorities in November as a suspect in connection with the death of the 14-year-old Southern California girl.
The teen’s remains were discovered in September 2025 inside the front storage area of the Tesla, which was registered to D4vd, that was impounded after it had been parked for an extended period in a Hollywood Hills neighborhood not far from a rental property where Burke had been living.
D4vd performed at Chicago’s Salt Shed on Saturday, Sept 6., just two days before her body was found.
Police said Celeste’s death likely occurred in the spring of last year.
Celeste, who disappeared in the Lake Elsinore area in 2024, was identified through forensics. She was last seen April 5, 2024, in the western Riverside County community.
Details about the circumstances surrounding her disappearance at the age of 13 were not immediately available.
Celeste’s brother told NBCLA last year that family members, who still live in Lake Elsinore, were aware that the girl knew D4vd.
Her decomposed body was found Sept. 8 after workers at Hollywood Tow reported a strong odor coming from the Tesla registered to the singer. Officers opened the front trunk, also known as a frunk, and found the remains in two cadaver bags, according to LA County grand jury documents made public following a hearing in Texas court.
The grand jury documents, including subpoenas for the testimony of Burke’s mother, father, and brother, said Celeste’s remains were not intact.
They were found a day after what would have been Celeste’s 15th birthday.
