The singer D4vd pleaded not guilty to the murder of Celeste Rivas Hernandez, the teenage girl whose dismembered and decomposed body was found in the artist’s apparently abandoned Tesla in September.

The 21-year-old, whose legal name is David Burke, was arraigned on Monday afternoon hours after Los Angeles county district attorney’s office announced the charges against him.

Burke has been charged with first-degree murder in the killing of Celeste, who was reported missing by her family in 2024, when she was 13. Authorities say she was 14 when she died.

Nathan Hochman, the LA district attorney, said during a press conference on Monday that Burke engaged in a sexual relationship with Celeste. He faces a murder charge with special circumstances, as well as charges for continuous lewd and lascivious sexual acts with an individual under 14, and mutilating human remains. Hochman described the killing as a “brutal and horrific murder”.

The arrest and charges have marked the most significant development in the case since the teen’s remains were found in Burke’s vehicle last September.

Attorneys for the Houston-born alt-pop singer said he was innocent in a statement released after homicide detectives arrested him on Thursday at a home in Hollywood.

“Let us be clear – the actual evidence in this case will show that David Burke did not murder Celeste Rivas Hernandez and he was not the cause of her death,” the lawyers said.

The story behind the death of Celeste has gripped Los Angeles for more than half a year. Investigators had appeared to be homing in on D4vd as a primary suspect for months, and his arrest last week marked a major development in the case.

Celeste’s remains were found inside a Tesla that was towed from the Hollywood Hills on 8 September, a day after she would have turned 15. Her family had reported her missing from her home town of Lake Elsinore, about 70 miles (115km) south-east of Los Angeles.

Authorities did not publicly name Burke as a suspect until his arrest. And his lawyers’ statement last week, in which said they “will vigorously defend David’s innocence”, was the first time they weighed in publicly.

The singer had been under investigation by an LA county grand jury looking into the death. The investigation was officially secret, but its existence – and his designation as its target – was revealed in February when his mother, father and brother objected in a Texas court to subpoenas demanding they testify.

The 2023 Tesla Model Y was registered in the singer’s name at the Texas address of his subpoenaed family members, according to court filings from prosecutors. It had been towed from an upscale Hollywood Hills neighborhood where it had been sitting as though it was abandoned.

Police investigators searching the Tesla in a tow yard found a cadaver bag “covered with insects and a strong odor of decay”, court documents said. Detectives partly unzipped a bag and found a head and torso.

Investigators from the Los Angeles county medical examiner’s office removed the bag and “discovered the arms and legs had been severed from the body”, according to court documents. A second black bag was found under the first, and dismembered body parts were inside it.

During Monday’s press conference, Hochman said that Celeste went to Burke’s home on 23 April 2025 and was never heard from again. Burke faces first-degree murder with special circumstances, alleging that he was lying in wait and killed the teen for financial gain to maintain his “lucrative” career. The charge includes an additional special circumstance for murdering a witness to an investigation, referring to the investigation into alleged lewd and lascivious sexual acts.

No cause of death has been publicly revealed, and police got a judge to block the release details of the autopsy, arguing it was necessary to maintain the integrity of the investigation.

The condition of the remains delayed the medical examiner’s ability to determine cause of death, said Jim McDonnell, the Los Angeles police chief, and caused crucial evidence to degrade or disappear. But the medical examiner was able to determine the cause of death, and the court order will soon be lifted, Hochman said.

The family of Celeste has remained private and has not made any public statements on her death or the case. A GoFundMe for her family described the teen as a “beloved daughter, sister, cousin, and friend”. A missing person poster for Celeste noted she was last seen wearing Hello Kitty sandals.

The killing left her community grieving the teen who was remembered as being “quiet” and “sweet”. A family friend told the Los Angeles Times that Celeste “was studious, a hard worker and intelligent” and “deserves justice”.

D4vd, pronounced “David”, gained popularity among gen Z for his blend of indie rock, R&B and lo-fi pop. He went viral on TikTok in 2022 with the hit Romantic Homicide, which peaked at number four on Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs chart. He then signed with Darkroom and Interscope Records and released his debut EP Petals to Thorns and a follow-up, The Lost Petals, in 2023.

When the body was discovered, the singer continued his North American tour, but when reports of his possible involvement spread widely, he canceled the final two shows and a European tour that was to follow.

The Associated Press contributed reporting