Singer D4vd Arrested on Suspicion of Murder Here Is Why LAPD Made the Move After 7 Months

Los Angeles police arrested 21-year-old David Anthony Burke on a probable cause warrant, nearly seven months after a 14-year-old girl's decomposed remains were discovered in a Tesla registered to him at an L.A. impound lot.

Singer D4vd Arrested on Suspicion of Murder Here Is Why LAPD Made the Move After 7 Months

Los Angeles police arrested 21-year-old David Anthony Burke on a probable cause warrant, nearly seven months after a 14-year-old girl's decomposed remains were discovered in a Tesla registered to him at an L.A. impound lot.

Singer D4vd whose legal name is David Anthony Burke was arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the death of a teenage girl whose decomposed body was found in the trunk of his abandoned Tesla last year, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

The LAPD's Robbery-Homicide Division made the arrest, and Burke is being held without bail. The case is expected to be presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office on Monday for filing consideration. The DA's office confirmed its Major Crimes Division will review the case. 

Who Is the Victim?

The victim, Celeste Rivas Hernandez, was a 13-year-old seventh grader when her family reported her missing in 2024 from Lake Elsinore, approximately 70 miles southeast of Los Angeles. Her long-decomposed body was found in a Tesla towed from the Hollywood Hills on September 8, 2025 one day after she would have turned 15. 

The medical examiner's office confirmed the remains were severely decomposed and that the victim appeared to have been deceased inside the vehicle for an extended period before being found. A foul odor from the vehicle prompted homicide detectives to be called to the scene.

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Why Was He Arrested Now And Not Sooner?

The timing of the arrest is a critical legal detail that most coverage has not examined closely. Authorities did not publicly name Burke as a suspect until his arrest. He had been under investigation by a Los Angeles County grand jury, a proceeding that was officially secret but its existence, and Burke's designation as its target, was revealed on February 25, 2026, when his mother, father, and brother filed an objection in a Texas court to subpoenas demanding they testify

The LAPD confirmed it had been investigating a trip Burke took to the Santa Barbara area sometime during the spring of 2025, following Hernandez's death. A spokesperson for Burke initially said he was fully cooperating with authorities, but as of November 18, NBC Los Angeles reported that Burke had stopped cooperating with law enforcement. 

LAPD Captain Scot Williams stated that once investigators developed probable cause to arrest Burke for murder, they moved quickly. Burke was arrested shortly after 4:30 p.m. at a house on Marmont Avenue in the Hollywood Hills. 

In California criminal procedure, a probable cause arrest does not require a grand jury indictment or a formally filed criminal complaint. Prosecutors now have until Monday to review the evidence and determine whether to file formal charges.

What Burke's Defense Team Says

Burke's attorneys — Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski, and Regina Peter issued a statement Thursday night directly challenging the basis of the arrest. The defense team stated that the actual evidence in the case will show Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez and was not the cause of her death. They noted no grand jury indictment had been returned and no criminal complaint had been filed, describing Burke as having only been detained under suspicion. The attorneys said they would vigorously defend his innocence. 

It is important to note that under U.S. law, Burke is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.

Legal Threshold: What Probable Cause Means Here

The arrest on a probable cause warrant without a filed complaint means prosecutors at the Los Angeles County DA's Major Crimes Division must now independently assess whether the evidence meets the threshold for formal charges. As of Thursday, no cause of death for Rivas Hernandez had been publicly released by authorities, according to the Associated Press. The absence of a confirmed cause of death is a legally significant gap that the DA's office will need to address before any murder charge can proceed.

Background on Burke

D4vd rose to prominence in 2022 with the TikTok-viral hit "Romantic Homicide," which peaked at No. 4 on Billboard's Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart, leading to a deal with Darkroom and Interscope Records. When Hernandez's body was discovered in September 2025, Burke was on tour promoting his debut album "Withered." He subsequently canceled his remaining U.S. tour dates, scheduled European performances, and a planned appearance at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles.

This is a developing story. No formal charges had been filed as of publication.