The cause of death for Celeste Rivas Hernandez has been revealed seven months after her body was found in a Tesla belonging to rapper D4vd, who has been charged in connection with her death
The cause of death for the 14-year-old girl whose body was found in rapper D4vd‘s Tesla has been released. Celeste Rivas Hernandez‘s body was found in the rapper’s car in September. He has denied any involvement in her death.
The teenager’s death has been ruled a homicide and the rapper, whose real name is David Anthony Burke, was charged with first-degree murder last week. He has pleaded not guilty and his attorneys say they will “vigorously defend his innocence”.
Since then, officials have released their findings about Rivas Hernandez’s cause of death, which were initially determined in December 2025, but were sealed by a court order initiated by the LAPD. The Los Angeles County Department Medical Examiner has now revealed the autopsy results.
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According to the report, Rivas Hernandez died of multiple injuries caused by an undisclosed object. There were two wounds to her chest and abdomen, which may be consistent with injuries caused by a “sharp instrument”.
Despite a prior “presumptive positive” result for MDMA and methamphetamine, the toxicology report revealed a follow-up screening found no evidence of MDMA and was inconclusive for methamphetamine. The report did state that alcohol may have been in Rivas Hernandez’s system, but that this did not contribute to her death.
The report added that there were significant changes to the body, but these happened postmortem. It said that her head was “partially skeletonized with an absent left eye”.
When police found Rivas Hernandez’s body, it had been dismembered. This happened a year and five months after she was first reported missing in April 2024. In September 2025, Police were called to a Hollywood tow yard where Burke’s car had been impounded as staff could smell a bad odour coming from it. Inside, as reported in court documents, investigators found a cadaver bag with a head and torso in it, and another with other body parts.
The state of decomposition that the teen’s body was in complicated the autopsy, meaning the Medical Examiner took months to determine the cause of death. Chief Medical Examiner Dr Odey Ukpo said on 22 April: “After several months, I am grateful this information can now be released, not only to the public, but also to the grieving family enduring loss.
“It is unfathomable they have had to wait this long to learn what happened to their daughter. The transparency of the information contained in our findings and reports is essential for empowering the community to make informed changes to affectively reduce fear and allowing the community to take informed action.
“Making the Department’s information publicly available is not just about accountability, it is about social justice and prevention. By ensuring access to this information, we strengthen our ability to learn, to act, and ultimately to prevent the next tragic loss of life.
“I want to extend my gratitude to our partner agencies for taking the necessary step of filing an order with the court to make this disclosure possible.”
Burke has been charged with first degree murder with special circumstances, including murder of a witness, murder for financial fain and lying in wait. He has also been charged with lewd and lascivious acts with a person under 14 and mutilating a body. He is accused of sexual abusing Celeste for a year between 2023 and 2024, during which she was 12 and 13. He pleaded not guilty during his arraignment and is due back in court on 23 April for a preliminary hearing. He is facing the death penalty if found guilty.
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