The 20-year-old musician D4vd (born David Anthony Burke) is under a lot of public attention after the body of 15-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez was found in a Tesla that belonged to him. On September 8, police recovered the body in a car that had been seized after being left in the Hollywood Hills. The body was in a very bad condition of decomposition. People had been looking for Rivas since April 2024.
A lot of people, especially on social media, have called for D4vd’s swift arrest, but officials haven’t done anything yet. Legal and criminological specialists say this isn’t rare.
The Investigation’s Difficulties: The Cause of Death Is Key Kevin Angelo Brown, a criminologist at Arkansas State University, told The Daily Mail that authorities must first figure out how and why someone died through an autopsy before they can file charges. He remarked, “If the results show natural death or suicide instead of murder, the legal path changes completely.”
Forensic Results are Very Important: Yosi Yahoudai, one of the co-founders of &Y Law, said the same thing to the outlet: “Police can’t make arrests or name suspects until the autopsy confirms homicide, or else they risk the case.” This is especially true when the body parts are deteriorated since detectives have to wait for forensic results before they can move forward.
Even though there hasn’t been an arrest, law enforcement is still looking into the situation. Reports say that police have searched the home where D4vd was staying and taken laptops and other devices that could be used as evidence for forensic analysis.
Evidence May Be Gone: An expert also said that the time that has passed since the body was recovered and after Rivas was last seen allows possible criminals time to get rid of evidence. This can make the investigation take longer and be harder than in a “hot” case where a crime has recently happened.
Link to D4vd
People are talking about the link between Rivas and D4vd. Rivas’ mom told the police that her daughter had a boyfriend with the same name as the singer. Also, it has been said that the two had tattoos on their right index fingers that said “Shhh…” and were the same. Authorities have not formally talked about the tattoo or acknowledged that the two are in a romantic relationship, though.
D4vd’s publicist has said that the singer is working with the police. D4vd has supposedly postponed his upcoming shows in the US and Europe because of the continuing inquiry.
The Los Angeles Police Department’s Robbery-Homicide Division is still looking into the matter. People are still waiting for formal news on the cause of death and any other developments in the case.