Key facts
- Indie pop singer D4vd, legally named David Burke, faces an evidentiary hearing on murder charges.
- Prosecutors allege Burke killed and dismembered his 14-year-old girlfriend, Celeste Rivas Hernandez, in April 2025.
- The alleged motive was to prevent her from revealing their relationship and jeopardizing his music career.
- Her body was discovered five months later in the trunk of an abandoned car registered to Burke.
- Prosecutors claim Burke began sexual relations with the victim when she was 11.
- Burke has pleaded not guilty to charges including first-degree murder and mutilation of human remains.
Indie pop singer D4vd, whose legal name is David Burke, is facing an evidentiary hearing for charges including first-degree murder, mutilation of human remains, and child sexual abuse. Prosecutors allege that Burke, now 21, fatally stabbed and dismembered his 14-year-old girlfriend, Celeste Rivas Hernandez, in April 2025. The motive, according to the district attorney's office, was fear that the victim would expose their relationship and jeopardize his burgeoning music career, which saw him gain fame in 2022 with viral songs and a deal with Interscope Records. Her badly decomposed body was discovered five months later in the trunk of an abandoned car owned by Burke. Prosecutors detailed graphic allegations of how Burke allegedly disposed of the body, including the use of a chainsaw and a cadaver bag, purchased under a fictitious name. The court brief also states that Burke's sexual relations with the girl began when she was 11. Burke has pleaded not guilty to all charges, with his defense attorney asserting he did not cause her death. The evidentiary hearing is intended to determine if prosecutors have sufficient evidence to proceed to a trial.