Police confirmed on Thursday that they have detained the artist D4vd after a missing schoolgirl was found dead in the boot of his Tesla. Official details regarding the evidence or specific findings that pointed to D4vd remain scarce, but police have confirmed that the artist, born David Burke, was taken into custody.
A formal statement noted that he is being held without the option of bail while authorities prepare to hand the case over to prosecutors on Monday.
The public has been gripped by this dark and unsettling story ever since officials found remains in a car registered to Burke back in September 2025. Police noted the vehicle had sat on a public street for several weeks before being towed to a Los Angeles yard, yet no one had ever reported it stolen.
LAPD NEWS: “Detectives from Los Angeles Police Department, Robbery-Homicide Division have arrested David Burke, a 21-year-old resident of Los Angeles, for the murder of Celeste Rivas. Burke is being held without bail.”
— LAPD PIO (@LAPDPIO) April 17, 2026
Identification of Celeste Rivas Hernandez
The medical examiner's office in Los Angeles confirmed that the body belonged to Celeste Rivas Hernandez, a young girl who vanished from her Lake Elsinore home in 2024 at just 13 years old. In a heartbreaking turn of events, her remains were uncovered on September 8, only 24 hours after she would have celebrated turning 15.
According to CBS News, which cited court documents, the victim's remains were discovered 'severely decomposed' and 'dismembered'.
Resurfaced photo shows singer D4vd with the then-13-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez pic.twitter.com/kA3hD8cbwY
— Unlimited L's (@unlimited_ls) September 19, 2025
Taking to X, the Los Angeles Police Department confirmed the breakthrough: 'Detectives from Los Angeles Police Department, Robbery-Homicide Division have arrested David Burke, a 21-year-old resident of Los Angeles, for the murder of Celeste Rivas.' The update further noted that 'the case will be presented to the District Attorney's office on Monday for filing consideration.'
Celeste Rivas Hernandez lived in Lake Elsinore, a town in Riverside County about 80 miles from the Hollywood Hills spot where her remains were located. On September 18 last year, not long after her identity was confirmed, her relatives set up a GoFundMe page called 'Help Celeste Rivas Hernandez's Family' to seek support.
History of Disappearance
Before her body was located, the Riverside County Sheriff's Office informed the Los Angeles Times that Rivas had been the subject of several missing person reports. She first fled her home on Valentine's Day in 2024 but came back shortly after, only to be reported missing once more on March 19. The final report was filed on 5 April 2024, when the teenager was still 13 and a student in the seventh grade.
Before her disappearance in April 2024, it was reported that Rivas was seeing someone called David. Speaking to TMZ, her mother mentioned that her daughter was in a relationship with a boy of that name, although she had never actually met him.
Once the remains were identified, the Los Angeles Times reported that detectives discovered a tattoo on the girl's right index finger that read 'Shhh...'. Her mother later told TMZ that her daughter indeed had that specific phrase inked in red. Following this revelation, social media users spotted pictures of d4vd sporting a matching 'Shhh' tattoo on the very same finger.
Investigation and Security Hold
The police have said they have evidence showing that Burke travelled north to the Santa Barbara area sometime in the spring of 2025, but they have not provided additional details about the trip or said why it could be relevant to their investigation.
Initially, the Los Angeles Police Department suggested it was uncertain if any crimes had been committed 'beyond the concealment of her body,' largely because a cause or manner of death had not yet been established. Data from the medical examiner described Rivas Hernandez as being 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighing 71 pounds, noting she had wavy black hair and was dressed in a tube top and small black leggings.
However, on November 24, the medical examiner's office revealed they were prohibited from sharing any further information after Los Angeles police obtained a court-ordered 'security hold'. A statement from the office confirmed that 'No records or details associated with the case, including the cause and manner of death and medical examiner report, can be released' until they are told otherwise.
Chief Medical Examiner Dr Odey C. Ukpo criticised the decision, stating he has personally 'worked on eradicating the practice of placing security holds on medical examiner cases simply by law enforcement request.' For their part, police officials maintained they requested the hold to ensure that investigators—rather than the general public—were the first to receive critical updates on the case.
