What to Know
- Singer D4vd has been identified as suspect in connection with the death of a 15-year-old Celeste Rivas, according to an LAPD source with direct knowledge of the investigation.
- The Lake Elsinore girl’s decomposed body was found Sept. 8 in the front trunk of a Tesla impounded at a Los Angeles tow yard.
- The car was impounded after someone reported it was abandoned in the Hollywood Hills, where neighbors say it had been parked for more than a month.
- The LAPD source with direct knowledge of the investigation told NBC4 Investigates that the Houston-artist has not been cooperative in the investigation
- Police tell NBC4 Investigates that Celeste’s death likely occurred in the spring and that D4vd likely had help in dismembering and disposing of the body.
Singer D4vd has been identified as a suspect in connection with the death of 15-year-old Celeste Rivas, whose decomposed remains were found in September inside a Tesla at a Los Angeles tow yard, according to an LAPD source with direct knowledge of the investigation.
That same source said the 20-year-old artist has not been cooperative in the investigation. Police tell NBC4 Investigates that Celeste’s death likely occurred in the spring and that D4vd likely had help in dismembering and disposing of the body.
Celeste, who disappeared in the Lake Elsinore area last year, was identified through forensics. The medical examiner is still working to determine a cause of death.
She was last seen April 5, 2024, in the western Riverside County community. Details about the circumstances surrounding her disappearance were not immediately available.
Her decomposed body was found Sept. 8 after workers at Hollywood Tow reported a strong odor coming from the Tesla registered to the singer. Officers opened the front trunk, also known as a frunk, and found the remains in a bag, police said.
Law enforcement sources told NBC News that the remains were not intact.
The “Romantic Homicide” singer’s world tour, which began Aug. 5, was in Minneapolis at the time of the body’s discovery with a stop in Kansas City the next day. The Tesla was impounded after someone reported it was abandoned in the Hollywood Hills, where neighbors say it had been parked for more than a month.
The LAPD has treated the case as a death investigation.
D4vd’s tour, which included a scheduled show in Los Angeles at the Greek Theatre, was later canceled.
Celeste’s brother told NBCLA earlier this year that family members, who still live in Lake Elsinore, were aware that the girl knew D4vd. Matthew Rivas said when his sister disappeared, she was on her way to see a movie with him, but never returned.
D4vd, whose legal name is David Burke, is a singer-songwriter who rose to fame with viral hits on TikTok, where he has 3.6 million followers. That success led to signings with Darkroom and Interscope Records.
Born in Queens, New York, Burke moved to Texas in his early teens and gained a following on YouTube playing Fortnite and other online games. He started creating original music, some of which went viral on TikTok.
He released his debut album “Withered” in April and embarked on a world tour.
In an interview on the “Zach Sang Show,” D4vd said the 4 substituted for the a in his name was for search-engine optimization and a representation of four cinematic universes with various characters that he was creating.
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