Singer D4vd Named as Target in Grand Jury Investigation Over Teenager Found Dead in Tesla
Alt-pop singer D4vd, whose legal name is David Burke, has been officially identified as the target of a Los Angeles County grand jury investigation into the killing of a 14-year-old girl. The decomposed body of the teenager was discovered last year inside a Tesla registered to the 20-year-old Houston-born artist, which had been towed from the Hollywood Hills.
Court Documents Reveal Singer's Status as Investigation Target
Court documents obtained on Wednesday explicitly identify D4vd as the "Target" of the inquiry, marking the first time authorities have publicly named him in connection with the case. The documents include grand jury subpoenas issued on January 15th that seek testimony from three of his relatives: his mother, father, and brother.
The subpoenas state that the "Target may be involved in having committed the following criminal offenses against the laws of the State of California, to wit: One count of Murder." While the grand jury investigation has been kept under wraps in California, the subpoenas became public following an appeal in Texas by the singer's family.
Gruesome Discovery in Impounded Tesla
The body of Celeste Rivas Hernandez was found on September 8th, a day after she would have turned 15. She had been reported missing in 2024 from her hometown of Lake Elsinore, approximately 70 miles southeast of Los Angeles, when she was a 13-year-old seventh grader. Authorities list her age as 14 at the time of her death in court documents.
Police investigators searching the 2023 Tesla Model Y in a tow yard discovered a cadaver bag "covered with insects and a strong odor of decay." According to the documents, "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 arms and legs had been severed from the body," the document states. "A second black bag was discovered underneath the cadaver bag. Upon opening the second bag, the dismembered body parts were discovered."
Investigation Details and Legal Proceedings
The Tesla had been towed from an upscale neighborhood in the Hollywood Hills where it had been sitting, seemingly abandoned. The vehicle reportedly exuded a "foul odor" at the impound lot, according to the LAPD.
A judge in Texas has ruled that the three family members cannot ignore the subpoenas and must appear to testify. Representatives for D4vd did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday, and they have not previously responded to emails seeking comment on the case. District attorney's representatives also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In November, Los Angeles police obtained a court order preventing Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Odey Ukpo from releasing the findings of the autopsy. No cause of death and little else about the investigation has been revealed publicly.
D4vd's Career and Tour Cancellations
D4vd gained popularity among Gen Z fans for his blend of indie rock, R&B and lo-fi pop. He went viral on TikTok in 2022 with the hit "Romantic Homicide," which peaked at No. 4 on Billboard's Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. He subsequently signed with Darkroom and Interscope Records and released his debut EP "Petals to Thorns" and a follow-up, "The Lost Petals," in 2023.
When the body was discovered, D4vd had been on tour in support of his first full-length album, "Withered." The singer was in the middle of a U.S. tour and continued to play several shows after the body was found. However, he eventually canceled the remaining North American shows in San Francisco and Los Angeles, along with a scheduled performance at LA's Grammy Museum, as well as a European tour that was to have begun in Norway after his connection to the case became widely reported.
The Medical Examiner's Office had previously stated only that the body was found severely decomposed and had likely been "deceased inside the vehicle for an extended period of time before being found."
