LOS ANGELES, CA — Newly released court documents identify the singer D4vd as the target of a grand jury murder investigation connected to the death of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, who was found dismembered in his Tesla last year.
The existence of the court documents was reported on by Los Angeles Magazine, which found that although the Los Angeles grand jury case was sealed with public viewing prohibited, the case was referenced in a Texas court case whose documents were not sealed. The Texas case concerns subpoenas issued by the LA grand jury to members of the singer’s family who live in Texas.
The singer, whose real name is David Burke, has been identified in the filings as the “target” of a grand jury investigation. The grand jury is considering whether there’s enough evidence to indict him on a murder charge, according to court documents obtained by Patch.
The documents also reveal new details about Celeste’s death and the discovery of her body. Court documents state that prosecutors believe she “may have ben a victim of foul play.”
The girl’s “severely decomposed, dismembered body” was discovered on Sept. 8 inside a cadaver bag located in the front truck of a Tesla registered to Burke. The car had been impounded days earlier after being found abandoned in the Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman wrote in court documents.
That day, the manager of the Hollywood tow yard where the Tesla had been impounded called police to report “there was a strong smell of decay coming from the vehicle which was attracting flies.”
Detectives confirmed the smell themselves and subsequently received a search warrant for the vehicle, according to court documents.
Inside the front truck, authorities found the cadaver bag contained a “decomposed head and torso.”
“Upon removing the cadaver bag from the front storage compartment, it was discovered the arms and legs had been severed from the body,” Silverman wrote. “A second black bag was discovered underneath the cadaver bag. Upon opening the second bag, the dismembered body parts were discovered.”
Many media reports have stated that Celeste’s body was in a state of dismemberment when it was found. The Los Angeles Police Department in November refuted reporting that Celeste had been “decapitated.” These court documents seem to corroborate the LAPD’s contention.
The court documents also offer a timeline of the Tesla Model X’s whereabouts before authorities discovered Celeste’s body.
A resident on Aug. 26 had reported that the Tesla had been abandoned on Bluebird Street in the Hollywood Hills’ Bird Streets area. Parking enforcement officers the following day noted its location and on Sept. 3 returned to the vehicle — which had not moved — and issued a citation, according to court documents.
Two days later, city officials impounded the vehicle and brought it to the Hollywood tow yard.
In November, the LAPD confirmed that some of its investigation involved a probe into a trip taken by Burke to Santa Barbara County last spring. TMZ had previously reported that Burke had made that trip to dismember Celeste’s body with at least one other person.
That trip would have been about a year after Celeste was reported as a runaway in April 2024 from Lake Elsinore. She was 13 at the time.
TMZ previously reported that Celeste’s mother confirmed her daughter had a tattoo of the word “Shhh…” on her finger, a detail noted in the Medical Examiner’s report. She also said her daughter’s boyfriend was named “David.” The singer has a similar tattoo.
The release of the LA court documents by Texas judicial officials comes after authorities in California have sought to keep tight control over information about the case.
The LAPD in November successfully limited the release of medical examiner’s records connected to the case despite the protests of the Medical Examiner’s Office. Such documents are public by default.
The grand jury’s investigation is still ongoing, LA Magazine reported.