Prosecutors filed formal murder charges Monday against 21-year-old music artist David Anthony Burke, known professionally as d4vd, in connection with the 2025 killing and dismemberment of a teenage girl.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman announced that Burke faces one count of first-degree murder with special circumstances, including lying in wait, committing the crime for financial gain, and murdering a witness. The artist is also charged with lewd acts with a child under 14 and the mutilation of human remains.
If convicted, Burke faces a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole or the death penalty.
The prosecution alleges a chilling motive behind the death of 15-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez. According to Hochman, Burke murdered the girl on April 23, 2025, to protect his “lucrative musical career.”
At the time of her death, Hernandez was reportedly a witness to an ongoing investigation into sexual acts Burke allegedly committed against her while she was under the age of 14.
“Celeste went to Mr. Burke’s house in the Hollywood Hills and was never heard from again,” Hochman stated during a Monday press conference.
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The charges follow a monthslong investigation that began in September 2025, when Hernandez’s remains were discovered in the trunk of a Tesla registered to Burke. The vehicle had been towed to an impound lot, where staff reported a foul odor.
Evidence indicates the victim was dismembered with a “sharp instrument” and her remains were stored in the vehicle for over four months. LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell noted that the delay between the murder and the discovery allowed crucial evidence to degrade, complicating the forensic timeline.
Burke was arrested in the Hollywood Hills last week and is currently being held without bail. His legal team—Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski, and Regina Peter—firmly denied the allegations in a prior statement, asserting that the evidence will exonerate the singer.
“The actual evidence in this case will show that David Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez and he was not the cause of her death,” the defense team stated.
Burke is scheduled for arraignment Monday afternoon. The District Attorney’s office has not yet determined whether it will seek the death penalty.
Hernandez had been reported missing from her Lake Elsinore home multiple times in 2024. Following the announcement of charges, her father, Jesus Rivas, issued a brief statement through an attorney expressing relief that the legal process has reached this stage.
