Singer D4vd is target of L.A. County grand jury investigation into teen’s death, according to court documents

Singer D4vd Target of L.A. County Grand Jury Probe Over Teen’s Death

A grand jury in Los Angeles County is currently investigating the death of a 14-year-old girl, Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose remains were discovered last year in the front trunk of D4vd’s car, according to court filings. The singer, known professionally as David Anthony Burke, is under scrutiny for alleged involvement in the incident, which occurred in 2024 when Hernandez went missing from Lake Elsinore, California.

Hernandez’s body was found on September 8 at a Hollywood tow lot, where her dismembered remains were uncovered inside the front storage compartment of a Tesla. Officers reported a strong odor of decay and the presence of flies when they approached the vehicle, which had been abandoned on a Los Angeles street. The Department of Transportation had marked the car and given it a citation before it was impounded.

“Detectives noticed a smell of decaying biological material consistent with a decomposing corpse coming from the front storage compartment of the vehicle,” the documents detail.

Inside the trunk, investigators found a black cadaver bag covered in insects, with a decomposed head and torso revealed upon unzipping. A second bag contained additional body parts. D4vd was on tour at the time the car was impounded, and he later canceled the rest of his U.S. tour following the discovery.

Both of D4vd’s parents, Colleen and Dawud Burke, were summoned to appear before the grand jury on February 11. The documents indicate that Dawud was called as a witness in the case, though his cooperation has been called into question. A police source stated the singer has not been cooperative with authorities, despite his spokesperson’s earlier claim of full cooperation.

Correction (Feb. 25, 2026, 6:20 p.m.): An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated the victim’s age as 15; the correct age is 14.

Minyvonne Burke, a senior breaking news reporter for NBC News, reported the findings.