Messages prosecutors argue were part of a calculated effort to create a false record
A young man who built a vast following through the intimacy of social media now faces allegations that expose a far darker private world — one prosecutors say included years of abuse against a child, and ultimately her death. David Anthony Burke, known online as D4vd, appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom this week as filings detailed claims that he killed 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez to silence her, then sought methodically to erase all trace of what had been done. The case asks something the digital age has not yet answered: how much of a person can an audience truly know, and what remains hidden behind the performance of a life shared online.
- A 14-year-old girl was allegedly stabbed to death in a Hollywood Hills home on April 23, 2025 — the same week her accused killer released his debut studio album to his millions of followers.
- Prosecutors allege the abuse began when Celeste Rivas Hernandez was just 13, and that she was killed after threatening to expose the relationship — framing her death as an act of calculated self-preservation by the defendant.
- Court filings describe a methodical cover-up: chainsaws, a body bag, a shovel, and a 'burn cage' allegedly purchased online under a false name in the days following the killing, while Burke continued touring.
- Her remains were not discovered until five months later, found decomposing in the front trunk of Burke's Tesla — a detail that collapsed the distance between his public life and the alleged crime.
- Burke's defense is fighting on two fronts — maintaining his innocence while arguing that seven months of intense media coverage has made a fair trial nearly impossible.
- With the preliminary hearing pushed to late May, the case remains unresolved but already stands as a stark collision between the curated intimacy of online celebrity and an allegation of profound violence against a child.
David Anthony Burke — the TikTok singer known as D4vd — appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom this week in a jail jumpsuit, saying little beyond a quiet 'yes, your honour' when asked about delaying his preliminary hearing. The court filing released the same day was far less quiet.
Prosecutors allege that Burke met Celeste Rivas Hernandez when she was eleven years old, began sexually abusing her at thirteen, and killed her on April 23, 2025, at his Hollywood Hills home after she threatened to reveal their relationship. Text messages from the day before her death show an argument about his involvement with other women, followed by messages in which she threatened, in prosecutors' words, to 'destroy his life.' The next day, they allege, he ordered an Uber to bring her to his home — then sent her texts asking where she was, a pattern prosecutors say was designed to fabricate a false record of innocence.
What followed, according to the filing, was a methodical attempt to erase what had happened. Using a fake name, Burke allegedly ordered two chainsaws, a body bag, an inflatable pool, a shovel, and a 'burn cage' in the days after the killing. Surveillance footage placed him as the last person to drive his Tesla — the vehicle in which Rivas Hernandez's dismembered remains would be discovered five months later, in September 2025. In the intervening months, Burke had been on tour, performing for audiences who knew him from songs like 'Romantic Homicide.' His debut album had dropped on April 25 — two days after the alleged killing.
When police found the remains, the tour was cancelled and Burke withdrew from public life. He was arrested earlier this month. In court this week, his defense team argued that seven months of intense media coverage — described by his attorney as 'white hot focus and attention' — had made a fair trial impossible and sought to keep the evidence filing sealed. Judge Charlaine Olmedo disagreed, releasing the document while agreeing to protect other materials. Burke's attorneys maintain his innocence and say the evidence will ultimately show he did not kill Celeste. The preliminary hearing, now set for late May, will be the next moment those claims are tested.
David Anthony Burke, known to millions as the TikTok star D4vd, sat in an orange Los Angeles County jail jumpsuit on Wednesday, shackled as he was led into court. He said almost nothing—just "yes, your honour" when the judge asked if he was prepared to delay his preliminary hearing until late May. But the court filing released that same day spoke volumes. Prosecutors allege that Burke stabbed 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez to death at his Hollywood Hills home on April 23, 2025, then spent the following days methodically purchasing the tools to erase evidence of what he had done.
The allegations paint a picture of a relationship that began when Rivas Hernandez was a child. Prosecutors say Burke met her when she was eleven years old. By the time she turned thirteen, they allege, he had begun sexually abusing her. For years, the relationship continued in secret. Then, in mid-April 2025, something shifted. Text messages show that on April 22, Rivas Hernandez and Burke argued about his involvement with other women. She sent messages threatening to disclose what she knew about him—to reveal their relationship and, as prosecutors characterize it, "destroy his life." The next day, prosecutors say, he killed her.
According to the court filing, Burke ordered an Uber to bring Rivas Hernandez to his home on April 23. He then texted her repeatedly, asking where she was—messages prosecutors argue were part of a calculated effort to create a false record, to make it appear he was waiting for her rather than orchestrating her death. What happened inside that house remains the subject of the criminal case, but prosecutors allege he stabbed her multiple times. They say he then dismembered her body in the garage.
In the days that followed, Burke allegedly turned to the internet. Using a fake name, he purchased two chainsaws, an inflatable pool, a body bag, a shovel, and what prosecutors describe as a "burn cage." The court filing indicates he was planning to incinerate evidence. Surveillance footage later showed that Burke was the last person to drive his Tesla—the vehicle in which Rivas Hernandez's dismembered remains would eventually be found. The timing is stark: Burke's first studio album dropped on April 25, just two days after the alleged killing, as he was making these purchases online.
For five months, the body remained hidden. Burke was on tour, performing for audiences who knew him from viral hits like "Romantic Homicide" and "Here With Me." In September 2025, police discovered Rivas Hernandez's decomposing remains in the front truck of his Tesla. The tour was cancelled. Burke retreated from public life and social media. He was arrested earlier this month.
On Wednesday, his defense team fought to keep the nine-page evidence filing sealed, arguing that the intense media scrutiny—what his attorney Blair Berk called "white hot focus and attention" over the past seven months—could prevent Burke from receiving a fair trial. Judge Charlaine Olmedo disagreed and allowed the document to be released, though she agreed to keep other evidence confidential. Burke's attorneys have maintained his innocence and vowed to "vigorously defend" him, insisting that "evidence will show that David did not kill Celeste." The preliminary hearing, now scheduled for late May, will be the next opportunity for those arguments to be tested in court. Until then, the case remains one of the most closely watched in Los Angeles, a collision between social media celebrity and an allegation of unspeakable violence.
Notable Quotes
We do have a very real concern about the amount and white hot focus and attention on this case for the last seven months— Blair Berk, Burke's attorney, arguing for the evidence filing to be sealed
Evidence will show that David did not kill Celeste— Burke's legal team, in their defense statement
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
What strikes you most about how this case unfolded—the timeline, I mean?
The compression of it. From the argument on April 22 to the killing the next day to the purchases starting immediately after. It's not a crime of passion that someone regrets. It's someone moving through a checklist.
The tools he allegedly bought—chainsaws, a burn cage. That's not improvisation.
No. That's planning. That's someone thinking through the logistics of making a person disappear. And doing it online, under a fake name, as if that creates distance from the act.
He was on tour when they found her body. How does someone perform night after night knowing what's in their car?
I don't know. Maybe he compartmentalizes. Maybe the tour was escape. Or maybe the question assumes a conscience that wasn't there.
His defense says the evidence will show he didn't kill her. What does that even mean at this point?
It means they're going to challenge the forensics, the timeline, the interpretation of the purchases. It means they have to, because the alternative is admitting something that can't be admitted.
The girl's family—they made a statement after her body was found?
Yes. They talked about the love they had for her and asked for justice. That's all they said. That's all they could say.