Overview
- Prosecutors, in Wednesday’s court filing, alleged David Anthony Burke lured Celeste Rivas Hernandez to his Hollywood Hills home and fatally stabbed her after she threatened to expose their relationship.
- Investigators say Burke bought two chainsaws, a body bag and a blue inflatable pool under an alias, with DNA in his garage and blue plastic fragments in the remains tying the dismemberment to that pool.
- Texts, explicit images and phone records cited in the filing trace a sexual relationship that began when she was 13, an Uber Burke sent on April 23, 2025 to bring her to his home, and a cover-up text he sent minutes after she is believed to have died.
- Authorities say he drove to Santa Barbara County to discard items later linked to the case, while Rivas Hernandez’s dismembered remains were found Sept. 8, 2025 in a Tesla registered to Burke at a Hollywood tow yard.
- Burke was arrested April 16th, pleaded not guilty to murder, child sexual abuse and mutilation charges, remains jailed without bail, and could face the death penalty if prosecutors choose to seek it.