On April 16, 2026, D4vd was taken into custody on suspicion of involvement with the death of Celeste Rivas Hernandez. Now, the singer’s lawyers have issued a statement declaring that “actual evidence” will prove he is innocent.
Attorneys for D4vd—real name David Anthony Burke—told TMZ: “Let us be clear – the actual evidence in this case will show that David Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez and he was not the cause of her death.”
“There has been no indictment returned by any grand jury in this case and no criminal complaint filed,” the statement added. “David has only been detained under suspicion. We will vigorously defend David’s innocence.”
The Los Angeles DA’s Office also issued a statement. They said that “prosecutors will review the facts and evidence to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to file charges.”
D4vd is currently being held in police custody while prosecutors review the evidence
On September 8, 2025, police officers were called to an impound lot in Los Angeles. Employees of the business had noticed an odor emanating from a vehicle in their possession. The car was a Tesla registered to D4vd, under his legal name.
Upon investigating, officers discovered a body inside the vehicle. It was later learned that the remains were those of 14-year-old Hernandez. She was reported missing from Lake Elsinore, California, in 2024.
“We know that we have human remains, and we know they were contained within a vehicle,” Alan Hamilton, Chief of Detectives for the LAPD, said at the time. “We are going to continue the investigation, and when a determination is made that potentially there was a homicide, then it will transition into a homicide investigation.”
In November 2025, ABC News reported that D4vd was on the LAPD’s “persons of interest” list. Sources also shared some grisly details of the crime being investigated with ABC News. They stated that Hernandez’s body had allegedly been dismembered. It was also reported that multiple people might have been involved in disposing of her body.
It’s been alleged that D4vd was not cooperating with the police investigation
NBC News later reported that there was a pending grand jury trial, with D4vd at the center. It was believed that he “may be involved in the death of” Hernandez, who “may have been the victim of foul play.”
Relatedly, in February, D4vd’s parents—Colleen and Dawud Burke—were ordered to appear before a grand jury in L.A. The couple lives in Texas, and were the victims of a swatting incident shortly after news broke about D4vd’s alleged connection to Hernandez’s death.
At this time, the Burke family has not provided a personal statement on the situation.
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