The family of controversial singer D4vd has reportedly raised funds in recent months, following a shock court hearing in which his powerful legal team abandoned his defence.
D4vd’s father, Dawud Burke, sold a home in Texas earlier this summer for more than $200,000, according to real estate records obtained by TMZ.
The publication also reported that the 21-year-old artist’s father had taken out a loan just months earlier.
The financial moves came shortly before D4vd (real name: David Anthony Burke) appeared to be in financial trouble, as a public defender has now taken up his defense in his trial over the sexual assault and murder of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas.
D4vd also pleaded not guilty to Rivas’ murder, as well as charges of child sex abuse and mutilation in connection with her death.
The Daily Mail has contacted representatives of D4vd, the Los Angeles County Public Defender’s office and an attorney for D4vd’s parents, Dawud and Colleen Burke, seeking comment.
A day after his lawyers abandoned his defense and left a public defender to represent him, TMZ reported that D4vd’s father Dawud Burke sold a home in Texas for more than $225,000 and took out a loan on another home for $138,000; D4vd is pictured in June 2025 in Paris
D4vd, which pleaded not guilty on Monday to the murder of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas and to charges of child sexual abuse and mutilation in connection with her death, appears to have been struggling with money as he tries to defend himself.
According to real estate records seen by TMZ, the singer’s father sold a three-bedroom, two-bathroom, 1,819-square-foot home in Houston, Texas, for $229,000 in early July.
And in July, Dawud Burke reportedly took out a $138,000 loan on a three-bedroom, one-bathroom, 1,260-square-foot home, according to the publication.
According to TMZ, D4vd’s father currently lives in a 4,426-square-foot home in Hempstead, Texas. It features four bedrooms and three bathrooms and is said to have an estimated value of approximately $850,000.
The family money moves come after D4vd’s lawyers Blair Berk, Marilyn Bednarski and Regina Peter told the judge overseeing his trial on Monday that they could no longer represent the singer.
“This morning, the court granted our request to withdraw as counsel and appointed the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office after determining that David was eligible for appointment as counsel,” the trio said in a statement to TMZ.
“We continue to support David and his defense against these serious allegations,” the attorneys continued. “We are grateful that the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office has assumed representation and that David has a highly skilled and dedicated team of attorneys and investigators behind him.”
At the same hearing, Burke pleaded not guilty to Rivas’ murder, as well as charges of child sexual abuse and mutilation in connection with her death.
The Daily Mail previously contacted D4vd’s lawyers for comment but has not yet received a response.
D4vd’s father sold the Texas home in July and took out the loan in April of this year, according to real estate records obtained by TMZ. Dawud Burke reportedly lives in a four-bedroom, three-bathroom home with 4,426 square feet located in Hempstead, Texas; D4vd is pictured in April 2025 in Palm Springs, California
The update on his family’s money flows comes after lawyers for D4vd announced in court on Monday that they will no longer represent him – at his request – while a public defender will take over his case; pictured in March 2025 in Paris
When taking over D4vd’s case, the public defender reportedly said the singer was indigent, raising questions about his finances.
According to the Los Angeles TimesBerk said in court that D4vd had asked the attorney general’s office to replace his counsel.
Berk and the other attorneys shared no reason why their client no longer sought their services, and Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Charlaine Olmedo quickly agreed to the change in representation.
A spokesperson for the LA County Public Defender’s Office told the Daily Mail that they could not share D4vd’s “financial information,” but they confirmed that a look at his finances indicated he was eligible to be represented by a public defender.
It is unclear how the artist is now unable to pay his powerful defense team, as it was previously shown in court that he had already made millions from a lucrative recording contract before going to trial.
In a statement to the LA Times, LA County Deputy Public Defender Walid Kandeel said: “We recognize the loss of life underlying the charges and extend our condolences to those who are grieving. At the same time, David Burke is entitled to a defense that takes his circumstances seriously and examines the evidence carefully. We are committed to providing him with that defense.”
Prosecutors previously revealed that Rivas was not pregnant at the time of her death in April 2025.
Sources close to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office told the Daily Mail in late July that prosecutors “do not believe she was pregnant at the time she was killed,” adding that “her body” was in “a state of decomposition.”
The public defender who took over D4vd’s case said in court that he qualified for their defense, and the LA County Public Defender’s Office said a review of his finances showed D4vd qualified; pictured in court in LA in April
Prosecutors previously revealed that Rivas was not pregnant at the time of her death in April 2025. Prosecutors said in a news release in late July that the singer killed Rivas on April 23, 2025, “because he feared their illicit sexual relationship would ruin his ambitious career.”
The revelation came after an April 2026 addendum to the death certificate said it was “unknown” whether Rivas was expecting a child in the year before she was killed. People reported. Before the adjustment, the death certificate previously stated ‘no’.
Prosecutors claimed in a press release that the musical artist killed Rivas on April 23, 2025, “because he feared their illicit sexual relationship would ruin his ambitious career.”
D4vd is accused of fatally stabbing Rivas and then using a chainsaw to dismember her remains in an inflatable pool he had in a garage of a home in the Hollywood Hills where he lived, prosecutors said.
Rivas’ remains were found in a Tesla registered to Burke on September 8, 2025, prosecutors said, adding that “small, blue plastic fragments” from the inflatable pool were found embedded in the victim’s remains.
The latest in the case comes after D4vd was ordered to stand trial for Rivas’ murder following a preliminary hearing in which prosecutors presented text messages hinting at Rivas being pregnant and having an abortion a year prior to her murder.
Los Angeles Police Department Detective Corey Farell said D4vd’s phone records hinted at a pregnancy in 2023 and an abortion in January 2024, with Rivas telling him, “Of course it’s yours, David.”
Farell told the court that D4vd then inquired with Rivas about her medical appointment, noting that he felt he had been “waiting for test results.”
The detective said the phone also contained images of child sexual abuse materials involving Rivas, which prosecutors did not present at the hearing because of their graphic nature.
D4vd is accused of fatally stabbing Rivas and then using a chainsaw to dismember her remains in an inflatable pool he had in a garage of a home in the Hollywood Hills where he lived, prosecutors said; he is seen in his mugshot from the LA County District Attorney’s Office
Rivas’ remains were found in a Tesla registered to Burke on September 8, 2025, prosecutors said, adding that “small, blue plastic fragments” from the inflatable pool were found embedded in the victim’s remains; it will be photographed in Japan in May 2025
Amid Farell’s testimony, Rivas’ mother Mercedes Martinez cried as she walked out of the courtroom with the slain teen’s father, Jesus Rivas.
Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman said, “This is too much, I know how hard this is.”
Farell’s testimony during Monday’s preliminary hearing revealed that Rivas’ parents had signed a form on September 23, 2024, authorizing Rivas to go to London with D4vd from September 24 to October 5, 2024. People reported.
D4vd had purchased plane tickets through United Airlines for a trip to London, followed by a trip to Texas, where members of his family live, Farell said.
Farell said Rivas’ family was aware of her link to the musician, and that they had traveled to both Las Vegas and Houston in 2024.
Patrick Steinfeld, an attorney for Rivas Hernandez’s family, said after the hearing that they were “shocked that the attorneys presented evidence to pin the blame on a 14-year-old girl,” according to court records. AP.
Los Angeles Judge Charlaine Olmedo then said sufficient evidence had been presented to proceed with a trial. The judge ordered that D4vd remain in custody without bail, with an arraignment scheduled for August 31.
Prosecutors argued that the evidence to proceed with a trial was overwhelming.
“Based on the mountains of evidence presented,” Silverman said, “all allegations have been proven far beyond the required standard.”
Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman said outside court that prosecutors presented only a “small portion” of the evidence they have.
They are still unsure whether to seek the death penalty. D4vd is eligible after Judge Olmedo also found probable cause for lying in wait, murder for financial gain and killing a potential witness. These are special circumstances of a crime that allow prosecutors to pursue the death penalty if D4vd is found guilty.
