D4vd Bought Chain Saws to Dispose of Teenager’s Body, Prosecutors Say

D4vd

Investigation

What to Know

Charged With Murder

Challenges of Case

Victim’s Cause of Death

Who Was Celeste Rivas Hernandez?

Advertisement

SKIP ADVERTISEMENT

You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load.

Supported by

SKIP ADVERTISEMENT

D4vd Bought Chain Saws to Dispose of Teenager’s Body, Prosecutors Say

In a legal filing, prosecutors outlined for the first time how they say the singer murdered and dismembered Celeste Rivas Hernandez.

Listen

· 6:53 min

Share full article

A neighbor of Celeste Rivas Hernandez’s at a memorial in Lake Elsinore, Calf.

Credit...

Mark Abramson for The New York Times

By

Matt Stevens

Emmanuel Morgan

and

Orlando Mayorquín

Reporting from Los Angeles

April 29, 2026,

10:09 p.m. ET

See more of our coverage in your search results.

Encuentra más de nuestra cobertura en los resultados de búsqueda.

Add The New York Times on Google

Agrega The New York Times en Google

The singer known as

D4vd met Celeste Rivas Hernandez

when she was 11, began a sexual relationship with her when she was 13 and, when she was 14, got into an argument with her the day before he invited her to his home and fatally stabbed her, prosecutors said in court documents filed on Wednesday.

In the days and weeks that followed, the documents say, D4vd placed her corpse in an inflatable pool and cut off her limbs with a chain saw he had ordered online before stuffing them into a garbage bag and putting the bag in the front trunk of his Tesla.

The legal filing offers the first detailed account of how the authorities believe that Celeste’s remains ended up in his car, where

they were discovered in September

. The police have

refused to discuss their investigative findings

for months, and the mystery surrounding the circumstances of Celeste’s disappearance has

captivated Southern California and beyond

.

At a hearing in Los Angeles Superior Court on Wednesday, where D4vd, whose real name is David Burke, appeared handcuffed and wearing an orange jumpsuit, his lawyers objected to the release of the prosecution’s brief. The filing outlines the evidence prosecutors say they will bring forward at a preliminary hearing, which is now scheduled for May 26.

The lawyers for Mr. Burke said the public nature of the documents in the closely watched case could complicate their client’s right to a fair trial with impartial jurors. But the judge disagreed, allowing for the document’s release.

A spokesman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the contents of the filing.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and

log into

your Times account, or

subscribe

for all of The Times.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access.

Already a subscriber?

Log in

.

Want all of The Times?

Subscribe

.

Related Content

Advertisement

SKIP ADVERTISEMENT