Burke and Rivas Hernandez Met Online Via Discord or Instagram, With Chats Dating Back to 2022

David Burke, the Gen Z pop star known as D4vd, was arrested and charged with murder in the April 2025 killing of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, whose dismembered remains were found in the trunk of his impounded Tesla in Los Angeles on Sept. 8, one day after what would have been her 15th birthday. Prosecutors allege Burke stabbed the girl to cover up sexual abuse that began when she was 13, got her pregnant, and talked her through an abortion.

Burke, who was 20 at the time, had been celebrating the release of his debut album Withered at a Union Square pop-up two days before the alleged murder, where he choked up during a performance of the song "Afterlife. A fan at the event, Caden Alvarez, recalled Burke's silence when asked about the lyrics, describing it as "complete silence" and "some sort of fear. A former label source at Darkroom/Interscope said the label was blindsided, noting Burke appeared "locked in" professionally. Burke and Rivas Hernandez met online via Discord or Instagram, with chats dating back to 2022.