D4vd, real name David Burke, is the goal of a Los Angeles County grand jury investigation within the killing of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez. Police found her decomposed body last 12 months in an apparently abandoned Tesla Model Y registered to the ‘Here With Me’ singer. Court documents reportedly showed the vehicle was towed from the Hollywood Hills, in line with The Associated Press.
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D4vd’s Family Members Appeal Subpoenas To Testify
Police had not publicly named D4vd—pronounced “David”—as a suspect within the case. But in line with court documents obtained by the AP on Wednesday (Feb. 25), prosecutors describe D4vd because the goal of a grand jury investigation. While he’s a goal, officials have yet to formally file charges. The documents say:
“Goal could also be involved in having committed the next criminal offenses against the laws of the State of California, to wit: One count of Murder.”
Meanwhile, grand jury subpoenas went out on Jan. 15, looking for the testimony of three of his relatives. The paperwork was previously sealed in California, where the grand jury investigation has been kept secret. Nonetheless, the documents became public after D4vd’s mother, father and brother appealed their subpoenas in Texas. In accordance with the court filings, the singer used the address where his relatives reside to register the Tesla that later had Celeste Rivas Hernandez’s body in it. Ultimately, a judge in Texas ruled that the three relations couldn’t ignore the subpoenas and ordered them to seem in California to testify. It’s unclear in the event that they’ve already given said testimony.
Subpoena Reveals Gruesome Details About Celeste’s Body
Police found the body of Celeste Rivas Hernandez on Sept. 8, a day after she would have turned 15. She was a 13-year-old seventh grader when her family reported her missing in 2024 from her hometown of Lake Elsinore. That’s about 70 miles southeast of Los Angeles. Court documents say authorities listed her age as 14 on the time she was killed.
The subpoena says police investigators searching the Tesla in a tow yard found a cadaver bag “covered with insects and a powerful odor of decay.” It says “detectives partially unzipped the bag and observed a decomposed head and torso.” Investigators from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office responded to the scene.
“Upon removing the cadaver bag from the front storage compartment, it was discovered the legs and arms had been severed from the body,” the document says. “A second black bag was discovered underneath the cadaver bag. Upon opening the second bag, the dismembered body parts were discovered.”
Before the police searched it, the Tesla had been towed from an upscale neighborhood within the Hollywood Hills. It had been sitting there, seemingly abandoned.
For context, the Medical Examiner’s Office had previously said only that police found Celeste’s body severely decomposed. Additionally they previously said Rivas Hernandez had likely been dead for an prolonged period before police found her body.
Then, in November, Los Angeles police got a judge to stop Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Odey Ukpo from releasing the findings of the autopsy. Officials haven’t revealed the reason for death.
What Has D4vd And His Team Said About The Grand Jury Investigation?
D4vd gained popularity amongst Gen Z fans for his mix of indie rock, R&B and lo-fi pop. He went viral on TikTok in 2022 with the hit ‘Romantic Homicide.’ The song peaked at No. 4 on Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. He then signed with Darkroom and Interscope Records and released his debut EP ‘Petals to Thorns’ and a follow-up, ‘The Lost Petals,’ in 2023.
When Celeste’s body was discovered, D4vd had been on tour within the U.S. The tour was to support his first full-length album, ‘Withered.’ Still, he continued to play several shows. Later, the last two U.S. shows, in San Francisco and Los Angeles, together with a scheduled performance at LA’s Grammy Museum, were canceled. His European tour, which was imagined to start in Norway, was also clipped.
Representatives for D4vd didn’t immediately reply to the Associated Press’s request for comment on Wednesday. Moreover, the outlet says his team has not previously responded to emails from the AP looking for comment on the case. The District Attorney’s Office declined to comment.
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Associated Press Entertainment author Andrew Dalton, author Jaimie Ding and former AP author Itzel Luna contributed to this report via Newsroom.
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