A newly revealed clue found beside Celeste's body has added a fresh twist to the D4vd murder case, prompting investigators to re-examine key evidence and raising new questions about the circumstances surrounding her death.
An LAPD criminalist testified that investigators discovered 11 air fresheners inside D4vd's Tesla, where the decomposing body of a 14-year-old girl was also found.
“I gathered some of the air fresheners and found 11 throughout the vehicle and the majority of them in the center console, rear seats and frunk,” Chelsea Murillo testified on July 22 - the second day of a preliminary hearing for the singer.
She noted additional air fresheners in the back-seat door pockets and said maggots and dead flies were found in the front trunk, where Rivas' remains were discovered.
The forensic examination of the vehicle took place in September. 9, 2025, a day after the discovery of the remains.
She said she observed a layer of dust on the Tesla and “noted there was a strong odor coming from it,” adding in her testimony that it “smelled like a decomposing body.”
Mercedes Martinez broke down in court as prosecutors displayed her daughter's passport photo.
A California Highway Patrol officer testified that the passport had been discovered by a road worker on Highway 154 in January.
Preliminary hearing of D4vd case
As per a preliminary hearing brief obtained by PEOPLE, the prosecutors claimed D4vd, whose real name is David Anthony Burke, drove to Santa Barbara County “immediately after the victim died, attempting to dispose of her property and destroy evidence,”
He allegedly returned home the following day “before going to a radio interview for the release of his album that week,” the brief stated.
After the court broke for lunch, Mercedes Martinez left the courtroom in tears, saying, "Oh, my God" and "This is so hard," as she leaned on her husband, Jesus Rivas.
Prosecutors displayed a series of crime scene photographs documenting key evidence recovered by investigators.
