A decomposed body discovered in an impounded Tesla in Los Angeles has been identified as Celeste Rivas, a teenage girl who was reported missing last year.
Authorities confirmed that the Tesla was registered to David Anthony Burke, known professionally as d4vd, a 20-year-old American singer-songwriter. Neither d4vd nor his representatives have responded to media inquiries, and police have not named him as a suspect or implicated him in the case.
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office announced Wednesday that the body found in the car was that of 15-year-old Celeste Rivas. The cause of death has not yet been determined. According to officials, the body was “severely decomposed,” indicating that she had been deceased inside the vehicle for an extended period before being discovered. The car had been impounded at a tow lot in Hollywood, where a foul odor led to the discovery on September 8.
A representative for d4vd told NBC Los Angeles that the artist has been cooperating with investigators since the body was found. The reason for the car’s impoundment remains unclear.
Celeste Rivas was last seen in April 2024 in Lake Elsinore, approximately 60 miles southeast of Los Angeles. She was 13 years old at the time of her disappearance.
D4vd, pronounced “David,” is a singer-songwriter from Houston who rose to prominence with his 2022 hit “Romantic Homicide,” which gained viral popularity on TikTok and reached No. 4 on Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. He followed up with “Here With Me,” further establishing his reputation for moody, genre-blending music. Both songs have surpassed 1.5 billion streams on Spotify. D4vd is signed to Darkroom and Interscope and released his debut EP “Petals to Thorns” and a follow-up, “The Lost Petals,” in 2023. His first full-length album, “Withered,” was released in April.