Celeste Rivas case: TMZ discusses conflicting reports in investigation

LOS ANGELES - Those following the case of Celeste Rivas Hernandez, the 14-year-old whose body was found in the trunk of a car registered to singer D4vd, were left with more questions than answers after the Los Angeles Police Department disputed reports that her body was found in a "partially frozen" state. 

The department released a statement days after it placed a security hold on the LA County Medical Examiner’s website, sealing the case from public view until further notice.

What we know:

On Tuesday, the LAPD released a statement to dispel reports that the teen’s body was found in a frozen state. 

"The body of Celeste Rivas was not frozen when it was discovered on September 8, 2025. She had not been decapitated. We have evidence that D4vd traveled to the Santa Barbara area sometime during the spring of 2025," the LAPD said in a statement. 

The statement continued, "The reason for that trip is still under investigation and we've drawn no conclusions at this point about the relevance of the trip to this case. As far as the court order, the LAPD sought to seal the records of the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's investigation into Celeste Rivas' death. That order was sought only to ensure detectives from Robbery-Homicide Division learned of important information surrounding her death before the media and the public. The order was not sought to undermine transparency. No other information will be provided at this time."

However, a source with the medical examiner’s office then doubled down on the frozen state claim to TMZ. 

TMZ’s Harvey Levin speculated the security hold speaks to the alleged tension between the medical examiner and LAPD.

 The medical examiner released the following statement regarding the security hold earlier this week. "The department’s mission is to have full transparency with the community by providing information about our cases to empower people to make changes that save lives," said Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Odey Ukpo. "Since becoming the department head, I’ve worked on eradicating the practice of placing security holds on medical examiner cases simply by law enforcement request. The practice of security holds is virtually unheard of in other counties and has not been proven to improve outcomes in the legal system. We are dedicated to serving our community with full transparency; however, the law precludes us from doing so while the court order remains in this case."

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TMZ's Harvey Levin speaks to conflicting reports

What they're saying:

The detail about Rivas Hernandez’s frozen state is "really important," TMZ’s Harvey Levin told FOX 11 anchor Marla Tellez on Tuesday night.

Was Celeste's body frozen when it was discovered?

"It appeared the body had been frozen somewhere and was thawing out. Now, the LAPD captain who is running this said on the LAPD side came out yesterday and said the body was not frozen," Levin said. "

We have a source, very well-connected with the medical examiner, who sextupled down…and we called again today and that it was partially frozen when found."

 Levin also revealed there is a document that specifies they were unable to take fingerprints because they were waterlogged.

Alleged Tension Between the LAPD and Medical Examiner

"There seems to be some dispute here between the medical examiner and the LAPD on this. Now, the LAPD does not have the medical examiner’s report yet. We’re told not just cause of death and manner of death but as far as we know, we don’t even have toxicology back," Levin said.

Levin also mentioned that one of his sources said some of the alleged tension comes after the LAPD reportedly found out the cause of death for Matthew Perry from the media, instead of the medical examiner directly.

Is D4vd a Suspect?

TMZ was the first to report singer D4vd, whose legal name is David Anthony Burke, has been viewed as a suspect in the case. Since then, the entertainment news outlet alleged a second suspect was involved. 

PREVIOUS: Celeste Rivas case: Singer D4vd reportedly viewed as a suspect in teen's death

"For many, many, many weeks we got nothing. I mean, it was total lockdown in a very unusual way," Levin explained. 

"We have since been able to get information and we are told even though the medical examiner has not determined cause of death… in fact, we’re told that it’s unlikely they will determine it because of the state of the body, that the LAPD is viewing this as a homicide and viewing David as a suspect." 

"We are also told that they have a second suspect and it has to do with the dismemberment of Celeste’s body," he added. 

Levin then referenced a recent episode of the "2 Angry Men" podcast with Mark Geragos. In the episode, Geragos claimed his sources told him they are looking at what happened before, during, and after the teen’s death.

How Soon Can We Expect Answers?

Levin said it’s unlikely details about the case will be revealed by the LAPD "immediately." 

"It’s a complicated investigation," he concluded.

The other side:

There are also conflicting reports about D4vd's cooperation in the investigation. Officials said he's been cooperative, but a report from People disputes that claim. 

The singer has yet to release a statement since Rivas Hernandez's remains were discovered. He has since hired a high-powered criminal defense attorney. 

RELATED: D4vd hires Hollywood's top criminal defense attorney amid Celeste Rivas death investigation

Editor's note: In previous reports, FOX 11 has referenced Celeste Rivas Hernandez as 15 years old. However, she was declared dead by the LA County Medical Examiner on Sept. 8, one day after her birthday, and authorities believe she had been dead for weeks before her remains were discovered. 

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