Missing teen found dead in car registered to D4vd had same tattoo as singer and he titled a song after her
Celeste Rivas Hernandez had been missing from Lake Elsinore in California since April 2024
The dismembered body found in the trunk of a Tesla belonging to singer D4vd has been identified as a 15-year-old girl missing for nearly 18 months.
Following forensic investigation of the body discovered on 8 September in the boot of an impounded vehicle, authorities have identified it as teenager Celeste Rivas Hernandez, who vanished from Lake Elsinore in California in April 2024, aged 13.
The vehicle belonged to 20-year-old D4vd, real name David Anthony Burke, whose spokesperson said has been made aware of the discovery and is fully cooperating with police. Officials have not issued any charges or released the cause of death.
According to TMZ, D4vd and the teen victim had matching “Shhh…” tattoos on their right index fingers. They also spoke to Hernandez’s mother, who said her daughter had been dating someone called David.
The “Shhh…” tattoo was popularised by Rihanna in 2008, and other celebrities, including Lindsay Lohan, also have it on their fingers.
A song called “Celeste” posted on SoundCloud and credited to D4vd was leaked in 2023, The Sun reports.
Police launched an appeal to find Hernandez following her disappearance. She was last seen leaving her home at 9pm on a Friday, wearing Hello Kitty sandals, gray pants, a black sweater and a hat.
Cops discovered human remains, reportedly a “head and torso,” inside a bag in the front trunk of the Tesla. The vehicle, with Texas plates, was at Hollywood Tow on Mansfield Avenue.
It had been abandoned for five days after being towed from the upscale Bird Streets area, police sources told the Los Angeles Times.
Lot workers had alerted authorities about a “foul” stench coming from the Tesla. Due to decomposition, the gender couldn’t be confirmed immediately.
On Tuesday, Hernandez’s body was identified, a representative for D4vd told NBC: “D4vd has been informed about what’s happened. And, although he is still out on tour, he is fully cooperating with the authorities.” The Independent has contacted his team for comment on the latest developments.
After reports of a body being found, Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter Kali Uchis announced she would be pulling her collaborative song “Crashing” with D4vd.
Responding to someone online who referred to the singer as her “friend”, Uchis distanced herself from D4vd and wrote on social media: "Not my friend i did a song with him which is currently in the process of being taken down given today’s disturbing news.”
The track “Crashing” was released on D4vd’s debut studio album Withered. A music video for the song, which features the pair, remains on YouTube.
D4vd began his music career four years ago, initially making montages of the popular video game Fortnite.