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Was Celeste Rivas dismembered? Autopsy update in D4vd Tesla case
The body of Celeste Rivas, who'd disappeared when she was 14, was found in a car registered to singer D4vd, in Los Angeles.
Police are still investigating the death of Celeste Rivas after her body was found in the trunk of a car registered to singer D4vd. Rivas had gone missing since 2024 and her body was discovered on September 8, this year, a day after her 15th birthday.
Wild speculations have tried to find links between Rivas and D4vd beyond the fact that her body was found in his car. Notably, authorities have not yet named D4vd a suspect though they searched the Hollywood Hills home where he was staying. The car where the body was found was taken from a street in Hollywood Hills to a towing lot in Los Angeles.
Since the start of the case, Rivas death was initially called a homicide, after which authorities apologized and stated that the cause of death had not yet been determined. Here's where the case currently stands.
Celeste Rivas autopsy update
The medical examiner for the county of Los Angeles has listed Celeste Rivas Hernandez's date of death as September 8, which is when her body was discovered. However, reports have noted that the body was decomposed, and earlier reports said that cops had been called because people in the towing lot got a foul smell from the car. Further, Los Angeles Times reported that authorities believed Rivas had been dead for weeks before she was discovered and had likely not seen her 15th birthday.
These indicate the date of death was before September 8, which authorities have listed, since the body was discovered on that day. Accordingly, her age is also listed as 15.
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The report for the ‘female Hispanic/Latino’ body notes that her place of death is ‘vehicle’ since she was found in the car. Authorities have not released any information about whether they think Rivas died in the car, or if her body was just placed there.
No cause of death is displayed yet, and it says it is ‘deferred’. Karen Tapia is listed as the investigator in the case and Dr Ansel Nam the medical examiner.
Was Celeste Rivas dismembered?
The medical examiner's report does not clearly mention dismemberment. Reporting from Los Angeles Times had said a “head and torso” were found in the trunk of D4vd's Tesla. The report, while not clearly mentioning dismemberment or decomposition, notes that there are ‘other significant conditions’ when it comes to the body.
While the investigation remains ongoing, Rivas' body was released to her family and she's been laid to rest. Authorities can't treat the case as a homicide until cause of death is determined. LAPD shared with Complex that there wasn't enough evidence to name suspects, and added that Rivas might not have died because of foul play in the first place.
