Text messages discovered on singer D4vd’s cellphone indicated he impregnated Celeste Rivas Hernandez, and persuaded her to have an abortion a year before he allegedly murdered her.
Los Angeles Police Det. Corey Farrell testified during Burke’s preliminary hearing Friday that phone evidence showed D4vd’s (David Anthony Burke) discussing pregnancy and sexual interactions with Celeste, which ended with an abortion in January 2024.
According to Farrell, Celeste was 13 and Burke was 18 in January 2024.
The Los Angeles Times reports that Farrell testified that the messages occurred from November 2023 and continued to March 2025.
As Criminal Enterprise reported, Burke allegedly murdered Celeste and dismembered her at his rental home in the Bird Streets neighborhood of Hollywood Hills, on April 23, 2025.
Burke was charged in April 2026 with:
- First-degree murder
- Lewd act upon a child under the age of 14
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office stated that Burke also faces facing special circumstances charges include:
- Lying in wait
- Murder for financial gain
- Killing a witness in a criminal investigation
Text messages exchanged in court Friday showed Burke asking the victim in January 2024, “wen u gonna get it done,” in reference to an abortion.
- Celeste: “in two days”
- Burke: “also my mother always told me to ask this question if I was ever in this situation … it is mine right?”
- Celeste: “of course its yours David”
A few months after the text exchange, Celeste reportedly became depressed about the abortion, writing that she “took an innocent life of a literal baby.”
“I care abt u i killed my kid [for] you,” she wrote to Burke.
“i don’t like talking about it cause it gets [me really] upset but id do anything to have it back.”
The pair then made plans to move in together in February 2024, the same month Celeste’s parents reported her missing from Lake Elsinore.
Burke also allegedly referenced fleeing the county together and getting married in Italy, but by November 2024, the relationship deteriorated after numerous disputes.
The pair, however, continued to communicate through a cellphone Burke bought for Celeste, after she went back to her family’s Lake Elsinore home.
Celeste expressed frustration over their November 2024 breakup after having sex with Burke “for almost a year straight,” according to testimony.
Burke allegedly replied that they had broken up at least eight times and claimed the relationship continued only because Celeste wanted to keep having sex with him.
“u asked me if I wanted to have sex man and I folded,” Burke wrote to Celeste.
David Anthony Burke/Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office
On April 22, 2025, Celeste confronted Burke via text about his alleged involvement with other women. She threatened to expose their relationship.
According to prosecutors, Celeste still believed she had a future with Burke, despite numerous break ups.
“The messages reveal the victim’s jealousy over defendant’s relationships with other women, as defendant led her to believe they had a future together,” court documents stated.
The following day, Celeste left Lake Elsinore after Burke ordered her an Uber ride. Her cellphone went silent after she arrived at Burke’s Hollywood Hills home.
Investigators believe Burke murdered Celeste some time after 10:10 p.m. that night, after she arrived at his residence.
“Knowing he had to silence the victim before she ruined his music career as she had threatened, very soon after her arrival at his home, defendant stabbed the victim to death multiple times and stood by while she bled out,” court documents read.
The County of Los Angeles Department of Medical Examiner stated that Celeste had “two penetrating wounds” on her chest and abdomen. Her cause of death has been officially listed as a homicide.
Investigators said Burke bought two chain saws online and took measures to conceal the death by dismembering her in an inflatable pool, inside the garage of the rental home.
Investigators found the victim’s DNA inside the garage, the filing stated.
Burke also purchased two tote bags, a body bag, the inflatable pool, and a laundry bag online, under the name “Victoria Mendez.”
In September 2025, police found Celeste’s partial remains inside the trunk of Burke’s Tesla, located at a Hollywood tow yard.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Charlaine Olmedo will decide whether the prosecution presented enough evidence to move forward with a trial.
It’s unclear if prosecutors plan to seek the death penalty. Burke has pleaded not guilty.
The preliminary hearing continues. Check back for updates.
[Featured image: Celeste Rivas Hernandez/LAPD]
