D4vd Charged With Murder in Death of Celeste Rivas

Singer D4vd has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez.

Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman announced on Monday, April 20, 2026, that the singer D4vd — a 21-year-old Los Angeles resident whose legal name is David Burke — has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez. Hochman described the death as "brutal and horrific." A not guilty plea was entered on Burke's behalf at his arraignment, and he remains held without bail. According to ABC News, the charges followed a monthslong investigation and the LAPD's presentation of the case to the district attorney's office for filing consideration earlier that day.

The charge is a striking turn for an artist who first went viral on TikTok, where he has nearly 4 million followers, and whose rise was interrupted only when Rivas Hernandez's body was discovered in his towed vehicle during his "Withered" world tour. The final shows of that tour, in San Francisco and Los Angeles, were canceled. According to ABC News, tickets for the world tour had been released on April 24, 2025 — the day after prosecutors allege Burke invited Rivas Hernandez to his Hollywood Hills home. She was never heard from again.

According to ABC News, the charges and special circumstances allege that Burke continuously committed "lewd and lascivious sexual acts" with the teen while she was under the age of 14, that he killed her for financial gain to protect his musical career from what she was threatening to expose, and that he unlawfully mutilated human remains. Hochman said at the briefing: "There is physical evidence, and there is forensic and digital evidence, that we intend to present in court to prove these charges beyond a reasonable doubt." ABC News also reports that Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell said detectives learned Rivas Hernandez had been involved in a sexual relationship with Burke when she was a minor and he was an adult.

ABC News reports that Rivas Hernandez, a reported runaway from Riverside County, was last known to be alive on April 23, 2025, when she arrived at Burke's home in the Hollywood Hills. On September 8, 2025, her badly decomposed, dismembered body was found in the trunk of his abandoned, impounded Tesla at a Hollywood tow yard, where officers had responded to a foul odor. According to ABC News, her head and torso were found in one bag and her arms and legs in another, per court documents; she may have been dead for several weeks, and her remains were found a day after her 15th birthday.

According to ABC News, Burke faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole, or the death penalty, with Hochman saying his office will decide later whether to seek capital punishment. Burke's attorney, Blair Berk, asked for a preliminary hearing as soon as possible, saying the evidence will show he did not murder Rivas Hernandez and asking that the evidence "come into the light of day at the earliest opportunity." ABC News reports his attorneys Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski and Regina Peter said in a statement they will "vigorously defend David's innocence," while his parents said they support him "one hundred percent." An attorney for the Rivas Hernandez family said the family is committed to ensuring Celeste's voice is heard.

ABC News reports that Burke's next court hearing is scheduled for Thursday, and that the medical examiner's determination on how Rivas Hernandez died has been made but its findings are sealed. The case joins a heavy docket for District Attorney Nathan Hochman's office: ABC7 Los Angeles reports Hochman's office has also charged Bailee Rios with second-degree murder in the Chatsworth Metro bus crash that killed Daniel Castillo, 46, and Gage Weida, 31, with narcotics reportedly in her system. Readers following the D4vd case should watch Thursday's hearing for rulings on the defense's request for an expedited preliminary hearing.