Alt-pop singer d4vd — legal name David Anthony Burke — has been identified as a “target” of a Los Angeles County grand jury investigation into the death of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, court filings and reporting show. 

Prosecutors told the court that the “target may be involved in having committed the following criminal offenses … one count of murder,” and the filings seek testimony from Burke’s out-of-state relatives as part of the sealed grand-jury proceedings. No criminal charges have been filed against Burke. 

Court documents unsealed through appellate filings describe how employees at a Hollywood tow yard reported a foul odor coming from a car later identified as a Tesla registered to Burke. When investigators obtained a search warrant and opened the vehicle’s front storage compartment, they found a black cadaver bag that “was covered with insects and a strong odor of decay,” the filings say. The petition further states that detectives “partially unzipped the bag and observed a decomposed head and torso” and that additional body parts were later located. The district attorney’s office has been presenting evidence to a grand jury since last November. 

A police statement later pushed back on inaccurate claims circulating online, saying the body “was not frozen when it was discovered” and “she had not been decapitated,” while investigators continue to withhold the autopsy’s cause and manner of death under a court-ordered security hold. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s office has challenged that secrecy order but, for now, toxicology and other lab results remain under seal. 

The unsealed materials also show prosecutors issuing subpoenas that were fought in Texas by Burke’s parents and brother. A Texas appeals court rejected the family’s effort to avoid appearing before the grand jury. Meanwhile, Burke canceled the remainder of his U.S. and European tour dates after the discovery and media reporting linked the vehicle to the case. Representatives for Burke have not publicly responded to recent requests for comment on the filings. 

For Celeste’s family and for the wider public, the developments deepen a months-long mystery. Celeste had been reported missing in 2024; her remains were discovered in September 2025, and investigators are still working to determine exactly when and how she died. As prosecutors present evidence to the grand jury, the legal process will determine whether the investigation produces charges; until then, officials and lawyers are urging restraint while forensics and subpoenas continue to move through the courts.