Overview
- Prosecutors filed a nine-page evidentiary brief Wednesday that a judge refused to seal, laying out the case they plan to present at a May 26 preliminary hearing.
- The filing says David Anthony Burke, known as D4vd, stabbed Celeste Rivas Hernandez after she threatened to expose their sexual relationship and did not call for help.
- Investigators allege he bought chainsaws, a body bag, heavy-duty bags, and a blue inflatable pool, then used the pool to contain blood while dismembering her, with blue plastic fragments later found embedded in her remains.
- Her decomposed, dismembered body was discovered September 8, 2025 in the front trunk of Burke’s Tesla, and DNA and blood found in his garage matched the victim, according to the filing.
- Prosecutors say texts and images show sexual contact began when she was 13, that Burke paid a classmate $1,000 to get her a new phone after her parents confiscated hers, and that he faces murder, child sexual abuse, and mutilation charges while held without bail as his lawyers assert his innocence.