Authorities in Los Angeles have released a new update after the discovery of a decomposing body inside a vehicle registered to rising R&B star D4vd.
The grim discovery was made after workers at Hollywood Tow, a storage facility used by the Los Angeles Police Department, reported a strong odor coming from the car.
Police detectives were dispatched and found the remains in an advanced state of decomposition inside the vehicle’s trunk.
Law enforcement sources say the Tesla had been abandoned in the Hollywood Hills for several days before it was towed to the impound lot on September 6.
The condition of the body suggested the person had been deceased inside the vehicle for an extended period.
The Tesla where the body was found is registered to 20-year-old musician David Anthony Burke, known professionally as D4vd.
The Houston-born singer-songwriter rose to prominence after his breakout single ‘Romantic Homicide’ went viral in 2022, and he has since collaborated with artists including Kali Uchis, 21 Savage, and Laufey.
He also contributed music to the video game Fortnite and amassed a large online following.
At the time of the discovery, Burke was on his Withered World Tour and was not in Los Angeles.
A concert scheduled for September 17 in Seattle was canceled following news of the discovery, though upcoming performances in Los Angeles have not been officially called off.
They are confirming that the remains belong to a 15-year-old girl who had been missing for more than a year.
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the victim as Celeste Rivas, a Lake Elsinore teenager who vanished on April 5, 2024, per the LA Times.
According to officials, the girl’s body was found in the trunk of a Tesla at an impound lot in Hollywood on September 8, 2025.
The medical examiner’s office provided specific details about Rivas at the time of discovery.
She was described as standing about 5 feet 1 inch tall and weighing 71 pounds. She had wavy black hair, a stud earring, and a yellow metal chain bracelet. At the time she was found, she was wearing a tube top and black leggings.
A tattoo on her right index finger that read ‘Shhh…’ became a key identifier. Her mother, who had long searched for her, recognized the tattoo and alerted media outlets, reports NBC.
Forensic testing later confirmed the remains were indeed those of the missing teenager.
The case is being handled by the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division, which has not yet determined how Rivas died or how her body ended up in the car. Officials have not announced any suspects, and no arrests have been made.
Initially, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office referred to the case as a homicide, but the agency later corrected its statement, clarifying that the cause and manner of death remain undetermined. The medical examiner has not yet released toxicology or autopsy results.
“The decedent was found severely decomposed inside a vehicle and appears to have been deceased for an extended period before being found,” the coroner’s office noted in a written statement, per NBC.
Authorities have not disclosed whether Rivas had any prior connection to Burke or others who may have had access to his vehicle.
For Rivas’s family, the confirmation brings a heartbreaking end to a 17-month search for the teenager.
Police say the investigation is ongoing and are urging anyone with information about Rivas’s disappearance or the abandoned Tesla to contact the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division.
