Inside the Celeste Rivas Mystery: Why Investigators Are Stumped — And Why D4vd’s Name Keeps Coming Up

There is no neat version of this story. A 14-year-old girl, Celeste Rivas, was found dead in the trunk of singer D4vd's impounded Tesla, and investigators still cannot say how she died. The part that makes it even darker: authorities now think her body was kept cold — frozen or refrigerated — before it was moved to the car. That one detail blows up the timeline and has made the forensics a mess.

What investigators know — and what they really don’t

Celeste’s remains were discovered just one day after what would have been her 15th birthday. By the time she was found, her body was already decomposing, which is bad enough for determining cause of death. Add in the possibility that she was frozen and later thawed, and you can see why the medical examiner has hit pause on any conclusion about when or how she died.

Cause and manner of death: "deferred"

That’s the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s official wording, which is basically: we need more time and information.

Why the focus is on D4vd

D4vd — real name David Anthony Burke — is under the microscope for one obvious reason: Celeste’s body was in his car. The Tesla had been sitting in the Hollywood Hills for weeks, long enough to get attention for the smell and the swarm of flies. It was eventually towed and stored, and that’s when the trunk was opened and Celeste was found.

Law enforcement believes she had been dead for several weeks before that discovery. Investigators are also digging into a separate wrinkle: a recent trip D4vd allegedly took to a remote part of Santa Barbara County, where he reportedly stayed for about two hours. On top of that, Celeste’s mother says her daughter told her she had a boyfriend named 'David,' and there are reportedly photos and videos placing Celeste and the singer at the same location on two different occasions. What that relationship actually was has not been officially confirmed.

The cooperation question

Here’s where the accounts don’t line up. Some law enforcement sources say D4vd hasn’t been cooperative despite being a central figure in the case. His team says the opposite — that he’s been working with authorities. Police executed a search at a home he shared with his manager near where the Tesla was towed, and he moved out a few days later. What, if anything, was seized during that search hasn’t been made public. As of now, he has not been charged with a crime.

The messy, moving timeline

• Throughout 2024: Celeste is reported missing multiple times; the most recent report is from Lake Elsinore, California.
• Weeks before discovery: A Tesla registered to D4vd sits in the Hollywood Hills, drawing complaints over odor and flies; it is eventually impounded.
• Discovery: Celeste’s body is found in the trunk the day after what would have been her 15th birthday; decomposition is already advanced.
• Forensics twist: Authorities now believe her body was frozen or refrigerated before being placed in the car, then thawed — making the actual date of death hard to pin down.
• Parallel threads: Investigators look into D4vd’s brief trip to a remote Santa Barbara County area; they also evaluate reports linking Celeste and the singer at the same place on two occasions.
• Current status: The medical examiner lists cause and manner of death as 'deferred.' Police search a residence tied to D4vd; he moves out days later. No charges filed.

The upshot: none of this is simple. Freezer-thawing complicates time-of-death estimates, the car location created a very public discovery, and the accounts of D4vd’s cooperation do not match. Until the medical examiner can lock down more specifics — and investigators reconcile those timelines — this stays a deeply unsettling open question.