Los Angeles Singer d4vd Arrested on Suspicion of Murder After Teen’s Remains Found in His Tesla

Los Angeles police have arrested singer d4vd, whose legal name is David Anthony Burke, on suspicion of murder months after authorities found the remains of a missing teenage girl in a Tesla registered to him.

Burke, 21, was arrested April 16 and 17 and was being held without bail, according to police information cited by The Associated Press. Authorities identified the victim as Celeste Rivas Hernandez.

Investigators say human remains were discovered Sept. 8, 2025, inside the front trunk of a Tesla at a Hollywood tow yard after the car had been impounded. The vehicle was registered to Burke, according to AP. Court filings cited in earlier reporting said the remains were severely decomposed.

The arrest does not mean Burke has been formally charged. The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office had not publicly filed charges as of Thursday night. AP reported that the Los Angeles Police Department said investigators will present the case to prosecutors, and the district attorney’s Major Crimes Division will decide whether to bring a charge.

The arrest follows months of unusually secretive proceedings in the case. Before Burke was taken into custody, Los Angeles County prosecutors had been using a secret investigative grand jury, a process that allows prosecutors to seek testimony and records outside public view while deciding whether to pursue criminal charges.

That grand jury investigation became public in February, when court filings surfaced in Texas after Burke’s parents and brother challenged California subpoenas there. Those filings described Burke as the grand jury’s “target” and said he “may be involved” in one count of murder.

Even with those filings public, key details about Hernandez’s death remained unavailable. Hernandez had been reported missing in 2024 and was last seen in April of that year, according to AP. Her remains were later identified through forensic testing.

The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner has not publicly released a cause or manner of death. Prior reporting said the agency’s case file is under a court-ordered security hold requested by LAPD, preventing public release of records while investigators continue their work. Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Odey Ukpo said in a statement previously reported by The Independent: “We are dedicated to serving our community with full transparency; however, the law precludes us from doing so while the court order remains in this case.”

Burke is a Houston-born alt-pop singer who broke out with the 2022 song “Romantic Homicide.” After the remains were found in 2025, some of his tour dates were canceled. The next public step in the case is prosecutors’ decision on whether to file formal charges.