D4vd charged with murder: What the Tesla discovery reveals

The discovery of a body inside a Tesla that belonged to alt-pop artist D4vd transformed a missing-teen investigation into a first-degree murder case. That single vehicle now anchors every major development from the initial tow to the formal charges against David Anthony Burke. The timeline matters because the evidence trail, the legal steps, and the court calendar all run through the same car.

Artist background and rise

David Anthony Burke, performing as D4vd, grew up in Houston after being born in Queens in 2005. He built an early following by scoring Fortnite montages with his own tracks. Streaming numbers and TikTok clips pushed the 2023 single “Romantic Homicide” onto charts and led to a debut album, Withered, released in April 2025.

By summer 2025, D4vd was touring behind the record and keeping a rental in the Bird Streets section of the Hollywood Hills. His daily driver was a 2023 Tesla Model X or Y that he had registered in Texas. The car would later become the physical link between the singer and the victim’s remains.

Burke had no prior criminal record and was seen as an example of how short-form video and gaming culture can launch a recording career. The contrast between that public image and the later allegations has kept the case in headlines since the body was found.

Victim profile and disappearance

Celeste Rivas Hernandez lived in Lake Elsinore, about ninety minutes from Los Angeles. Riverside County records show she was reported missing several times, most recently in spring 2025. She was fourteen years old when she was last seen alive on April 23, 2025.

Cell-phone location data and an Uber receipt placed her at Burke’s Hollywood Hills address the same day. Prosecutors say the two had been in contact since she was thirteen, citing thousands of text messages recovered from cloud accounts. Her family continued to search for her through the summer.

September 8 would have been her fifteenth birthday. Instead, the day marked the discovery of her remains inside the trunk of the impounded Tesla, shifting the focus from a missing-person case to a homicide investigation.

Tesla impound and first clues

The Tesla had been parked on a Bird Streets curb for weeks when parking enforcement issued repeated citations. On September 5, 2025, the vehicle was towed to a Hollywood tow yard. Staff noticed a strong odor coming from the front trunk, known in Tesla models as the frunk.

Opening the compartment revealed two black bags. One held the victim’s head and torso; the second contained severed arms and legs. Eleven air fresheners were scattered among the remains. Investigators also recovered blue plastic fragments inside the wounds that later matched an inflatable pool purchased weeks earlier.

The car had been sitting in the yard for three days before the odor check. By then, decomposition was advanced, and the medical examiner later described the body as partially skeletonized. The discovery date, September 8, fell one day after what would have been Celeste’s birthday.

Forensic findings in the vehicle

DNA swabs from the frunk and rear cargo area matched Celeste Rivas Hernandez. Presumptive blood tests using phenolphthalein and Bluestar were positive in multiple locations. Amazon and Home Depot records tied to Burke’s accounts showed purchases of chainsaws, cadaver bags, and an inflatable pool around the time of the disappearance.

Autopsy results listed the cause of death as multiple penetrating injuries, including two wounds that transected the liver. A tattoo on the victim’s right index finger read “Shhh…,” matching a design Burke had displayed on social media. Several fingers, including one that may have carried another tattoo, remain unaccounted for.

Cell-site location data from the Tesla showed the car had been driven to the Hollywood Hills property in late April 2025 and remained largely stationary afterward while Burke was on tour. That timeline aligns with the period prosecutors allege the body was stored and later dismembered.

Alleged relationship and motive

Prosecutors claim the relationship began in September 2023, when Celeste was thirteen and Burke was eighteen. They cite text messages, pregnancy-related medical visits, and an alleged abortion as evidence of ongoing sexual contact. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office described the case as one of grooming followed by murder to prevent exposure.

According to the charging documents, Celeste threatened to reveal the relationship and damage Burke’s rising career. The special circumstances filed with the murder count—lying in wait, financial gain, and killing a witness—reflect that alleged motive. The same documents charge continuous sexual abuse of a child under fourteen and unlawful mutilation of human remains.

Defense attorneys have stated that the evidence will show Burke did not cause Celeste’s death. They have not detailed an alternative theory, and the preliminary hearing proceeded without the defense calling witnesses to challenge the prosecution’s timeline.

Arrest and charging decisions

Burke was arrested at his Hollywood Hills residence on April 16, 2026. Four days later, the District Attorney’s office filed first-degree murder charges with special circumstances, making the case eligible for the death penalty. He pleaded not guilty at arraignment and remains held without bail at Twin Towers Correctional Facility.

Investigators had spent the preceding months executing search warrants on Burke’s properties, digital accounts, and financial records. The Tesla itself was processed at a secure LAPD facility, where additional trace evidence was collected from the frunk seals and undercarriage.

Public attention intensified once the charges were announced. Coverage on local and national outlets focused on the seven-month gap between the discovery of the body and the filing of charges, a period during which prosecutors weighed the strength of the forensic and digital evidence.

Preliminary hearing and evidence review

The five-day preliminary hearing in July 2026 featured testimony from tow-yard employees, forensic technicians, and digital analysts. The court found probable cause on every count, allowing the case to proceed to trial. No bail request was granted.

Prosecutors introduced location data from the Tesla, purchase receipts, and DNA profiles lifted from the bags and the garage at the Hollywood Hills property. Defense counsel reserved opening statements and did not present witnesses, a common tactic when the goal is to learn the prosecution’s strategy ahead of trial.

The hearing also revealed gaps that remain under investigation: the murder weapon has not been recovered, and certain personal items belonging to the victim are still missing. Those absences have not altered the court’s finding of probable cause.

Upcoming court dates and civil action

A status conference is scheduled for October 19, 2026. Trial is expected to begin in 2027, though exact dates will depend on discovery completion and any pretrial motions. Burke switched to a public defender in August 2026 after his original counsel withdrew.

In September 2026, Celeste’s family filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against Burke in Los Angeles Superior Court. The civil case is stayed pending resolution of the criminal matter, a standard procedure when overlapping evidence is involved.

Both sides continue to review electronic records and forensic reports. The next formal step after the October status conference will likely be a trial-setting hearing once the defense has completed its review of the discovery material.

Case outlook

The Tesla remains the single object that ties the disappearance, the body, and the charges together. Its impound record, location data, and forensic yield have shaped every stage of the prosecution. As the October status conference approaches, the case moves closer to a trial that will test how much weight a jury gives to the physical evidence recovered from that vehicle.