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New testimony presented during the preliminary hearing of singer D4vd revealed that the family of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez had signed a travel consent form allowing their daughter to travel with him to London in 2024.
Court records presented on the fifth day of the hearing on July 27 showed that Celeste's parents, Jesus Rivas and Mercedes Martinez, signed the authorization on Sept. 23, 2024. The document granted permission for their daughter to travel with the singer from Sept. 24 through Oct. 5.
Earlier evidence presented in court indicated that D4vd, whose legal name is David Anthony Burke, purchased airline tickets for both himself and Celeste. The itinerary included travel to London before continuing to Texas, where Burke planned to visit his family.
At the conclusion of the hearing, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charlaine F. Olmedo ruled that prosecutors had presented sufficient evidence for the case to proceed to trial.
Outside the courthouse, attorney Patrick Steinfeld said Celeste's family was relieved that the preliminary hearing had concluded. He praised prosecutors and Los Angeles Police Department investigators for their efforts and said the family intended to take time to rest before the next stage of the legal process.
Burke, 21, is accused of murdering Celeste inside his Hollywood Hills home on April 23, 2025. Prosecutors allege the pair had been involved in an illegal sexual relationship before her death.
According to investigators, Burke allegedly stabbed the teenager before dismembering her body. Prosecutors claim he later disposed of the remains using tools and supplies that included chainsaws, cadaver bags, heavy duty laundry bags, a shovel and cleaning equipment purchased online.
Detective Corey Farell of the Los Angeles Police Department also testified about text messages exchanged between Burke and Celeste shortly before her death. Prosecutors believe the two argued over Burke's friendship with another woman.
Messages shown in court indicated that Celeste confronted Burke about the relationship and threatened to expose information about him. The following day, she insisted on meeting him and warned that she would reveal everything if she saw him with the other woman again.
Later that evening, Burke allegedly arranged an Uber to bring Celeste from near her home in Lake Elsinore to his residence. Text messages showed her informing him that she was nearly there, to which he replied that the gate was open and the door unlocked. Investigators said she never sent another message after arriving.
Farell also testified that Celeste's family knew about her relationship with Burke and that the pair had previously traveled together to Las Vegas and Houston in 2024.
Authorities later discovered Celeste's remains inside the front trunk of Burke's Tesla on Sept. 8, 2025, three days after the vehicle had been impounded near his home. Prosecutors allege Burke first met Celeste in 2022 when she was 11 years old and that their sexual relationship began in late 2023 when she was 13 and he was 18
