Horrifying new details have emerged regarding the disturbing manner in which singer D4vd, whose real name is David Burke, allegedly mutilated a 14-year-old girl with a chainsaw. The performer is currently appearing in court, charged with the murder of Celeste Rivas.
Alleged Sequence of Events
According to prosecutors, Burke ordered an Uber to transport Rivas from her family home in Lake Elsinore to his Hollywood Hills residence on the night of April 23, 2025. They claim he then stabbed her to death and stood by as she bled out.
Purchases After the Murder
Court documents allege that the following day, Burke ordered a shovel from Home Depot via Postmates. Roughly a week later, he ordered two chainsaws from Amazon, and on May 5, he allegedly ordered a body bag, heavy-duty laundry bags, and a blue inflatable pool. The documents state that Burke made these purchases under the fake name Victoria Mendez.
Investigators told the court that from there, he “took horrifying measures to destroy and discard the victim’s body.” He allegedly placed Rivas’ body into the blue inflatable pool to prevent blood from making a mess in his garage and used the chainsaw to cut off her limbs. Plastic fragments embedded in Rivas’ remains matched those found on the pool purchased by Burke, according to investigators.
Missing Body Parts
The singer also amputated Rivas’ left ring and pinky fingers, as her ring finger bore a tattoo of his name. These fingers have not been recovered.
In September 2025, police executed a search warrant at Burke’s home and “discovered evidence consistent with the dismemberment of the victim’s body in the inflatable pool, which contained multiple linear cuts. Several biological samples, which tested positive for blood, were collected within the garage area.” Investigators found DNA that matched Rivas.
Relationship and Threats
The documents claim that Burke and Rivas engaged in a “lengthy argument” via text message the night before the alleged murder because she was jealous about Burke’s relationships with other women. “She became extremely upset and threatened to disclose damning information about her relationship with defendant to end his career and destroy his life,” investigators said.
The documents also reveal that Burke and Rivas allegedly met when she was only 11 years old in 2022. Investigators claim that the two began a sexual relationship in November 2023, when she was 13 and Burke was 18.
Previous Missing Person Report
Long before her alleged murder, Rivas was reportedly reported missing by her family in February 2024. Detectives discovered a phone number in her phone belonging to Burke. Burke claimed he was unaware that she was a minor or that she had been reported missing when contacted by detectives. The documents say that Rivas’ family confiscated her phone once she was located, but Burke continued to pursue her, having been informed she was not of age. Burke allegedly drove to Rivas’ hometown, Lake Elsinore, and paid a fellow student $1,000 to give Rivas a phone he had purchased so they could continue to communicate. Text messages recovered by detectives indicate the pair continued to have a sexual relationship.
Court Proceedings
Burke appeared in court on Wednesday, April 29, where his attorney expressed concerns about the alleged evidence becoming public. This follows reports last week that a “significant” amount of child pornography was allegedly found during a search of Burke’s iPhone. Investigators said they gathered 40 terabytes of data through a lengthy investigation.
Discovery of Body and Charges
Rivas’ dismembered body was discovered on September 8, 2025, in the trunk of a Tesla that belonged to Burke. The Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office determined that the 14-year-old died from “multiple penetrating injuries.” Her cause of death was only determined on December 8, 2025.
Burke was charged with first-degree murder with special circumstances, including lying in wait, murder of a witness to an investigation, and murder for financial gain. He was also charged with lewd and lascivious sexual acts with an individual under 14 years old, and mutilating the human remains of a body. The special circumstance of murder of a witness to an investigation is because Rivas was a witness in the lewd-and-lascivious investigation. Officials have said the financial gain circumstance relates to the fact that Burke believed allegations of sexual relations with a minor could destroy his music career. Burke is currently being held in the infamous twin towers jail in downtown Los Angeles.
