Authorities have identified a decomposing body found in a car registered to musician D4vd as Celeste Rivas, a 15-year-old from Lake Elsinore, California, who had been reported missing earlier this year. The remains were located Sept. 8 inside the trunk of an impounded Tesla at a Hollywood tow yard in Los Angeles after officers responded to reports of a foul odor, police said.
The vehicle, a Tesla with a Texas license plate, had been towed from the Hollywood Hills after being abandoned five days earlier. The car is registered to 20-year-old David Anthony Burke, the official name of D4vd, and police said the musician is cooperating with investigators.
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner identified the remains as Celeste Rivas. The person was described as about 5 feet 2 inches tall with wavy black hair and wearing a tube top and black leggings at the time of death. A tattoo on the right index finger read Shhh. Investigators said the remains were not intact and appeared to have been dead for an extended period, and they have not yet determined the cause or time of death.
Rivas disappeared on April 5, 2024, when she was 13 years old, according to a missing person flyer cited by CBS News. She was last known to be in the Lake Elsinore area, and authorities have said the case remains unresolved.
D4vd, who has millions of followers on social media and rose to prominence with hits such as Here With Me and Romantic Homicide, released his debut album in April and was on tour when the remains were found. His team said he is cooperating with investigators, and the tour's Seattle stop scheduled for Wednesday was canceled in the wake of the discovery.
Authorities emphasized that the investigation is ongoing, and there is no immediate information about a possible link between the car, the performer, and the missing teen beyond the ownership of the vehicle. Officials cautioned that details could change as the coroner's work continues and detectives review surveillance footage and other records tied to the tow yard and the vehicle.