The Long, Challenging Road to D4vd’s Arrest

D4vd

Investigation

What to Know

Charged With Murder

Victim’s Cause of Death

Who Was Celeste Rivas Hernandez?

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The Long, Challenging Road to D4vd’s Arrest

Uncooperative witnesses drove prosecutors to convene an investigative grand jury after a teenage girl’s body was discovered in the trunk of the singer’s car.

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A memorial to Celeste Rivas Hernandez. The authorities have said more than four months passed between her killing and the discovery of her body in September.

Credit...

Mark Abramson for The New York Times

By

Julia Jacobs

and

Matt Stevens

April 25, 2026,

5:02 a.m. ET

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It was far from a simple death investigation.

The remains of a teenage girl were discovered in early September in the front trunk of a Tesla that had been abandoned for weeks on a Los Angeles street during peak summer heat. The body — dismembered and placed in black bags — was decomposed beyond recognition.

The pressure on law enforcement to solve the case intensified once it emerged that the car was registered to David Burke, a rising indie-pop singer with a huge Gen Z following who performs as D4vd.

But the investigation dragged on, for seven months, with few updates from the Los Angeles Police Department.

The silence ended when

the authorities arrested Mr. Burke

on April 16 and then

charged him with the murder

of 14-year-old

Celeste Rivas Hernandez

. He has pleaded not guilty.

There were no shortage of challenges for those trying to solve the mystery of Celeste’s death.

The authorities have said more than four months passed between her killing and the discovery of her body, a gap that complicated evidence collection. They encountered resistance from some witnesses during their investigation, driving prosectors to convene an investigative grand jury that could allow for witness testimony to be compelled. All the while,

misinformation was swirling around

Los Angeles and online.

Image

There is about 40 terabytes’ worth of discovery that prosecutors must turn over to the defense. “If you were to read every page of it, it would keep you busy for years,” said Nathan J. Hochman, the Los Angeles County district attorney.

Credit...

Mark Abramson for The New York Times

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