Singer D4vd, whose real name is David Anthony Burke, has been charged with killing 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez. On Wednesday, an autopsy report released stating her manner of death was homicide and she died of multiple penetrating injuries. File Photo by Cyril Zingaro/EPA
April 23 (UPI) — Celeste Rivas Hernandez, the 14-year-old girl whose decomposing and dismembered body was found late last summer in the trunk of singer D4vd’s car, died from “multiple penetrating injuries” to the torso, according to the autopsy report.
David Anthony Burke, better known by his stage name D4vd, was charged by Los Angeles County prosecutors on Monday with murder, unlawful mutilation of human remains and continuous sexual abuse of a child under the age of 14.
Authorities have been investigating the 21-year-old since Sept. 8, when a dismembered body was found stuffed into two bags in the front trunk of his Tesla, which had sat in a Los Angeles tow yard for four months.
Prosecutors allege that Burke invited Celeste to his Hollywood Hills home on April 23, 2025, and she was never seen again. Celeste, of Lake Elsinore, Calif., was reported missing in early 2024, when she was 13 years old.
The County of Los Angeles Department of Medical Examiner announced Celeste’s cause and manner of death as homicide Wednesday.
“After several months, I am grateful this information can now bee released, not only to the public, but also to the grieving family enduring loss,” Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Odey Ukpo said in a statement.
“It is unfathomable they have had to wait this long to learn what happened to their daughter.”
The 26-page report states two penetrating wounds to the torso were discovered: one to the right abdomen and one to the left chest. The upper and lower extremities of the body were also dismembered, and the body had undergone “severe postmortem changes,” it said.
Presumptive positives for benzodiazepines, methamphetamine and MDMA were found in her system during an initial screening, according to the report, which listed the date and place of injury as “unknown.”
A deputy medical examiner conducted an examination of the body two days after it was found, with the cause and manner of death determined on Dec. 9, according to the medical examiner’s office, which said a court order had prevented the release oof the findings until now.
“The Rivas Hernandez family is absolutely devastated by the findings contained in the medical examiner’s report involving the horrible and gruesome death of their beloved daughter,” Patrick Steinfeld, a lawyer for Celeste’s family, said in a statement.
“These findings have caused profound pain for the family.”
Burke was arrested by authorities in Los Angeles on Thursday.
If convicted, Burke faces death or life in state prison without the possibility of parole.
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