(NewsNation) — As singer D4vd, whose legal name is David Anthony Burke, entered a second day of preliminary hearings in the killing of Celeste Rivas Hernandez, prosecutors focused on a possible financial motive.

During the hearing, a member of Burke’s management team and the senior vice president of finance at Interscope Records, where the singer was previously signed, testified about the money Burke was earning before the 14-year-old’s death.

According to the New York Times, Burke earned about $7 million during his contract with Interscope, which began in 2022 and ended in December 2025. His assets reportedly total more than $10 million, and he also signed a record deal worth $19 million.

Prosecutors allege Burke stood to lose a significant amount of money if damaging information about his relationship with Rivas Hernandez became public, leading them to argue he killed her to keep her from speaking out.

Retired LAPD detective Moses Castillo told NewsNation he believes that theory is plausible.

“I do believe that the main motive is to silence her,” Castillo said. “I find it very interesting that in the autopsy, the only finger of Celeste’s that remained was of the ‘shhh’ tattoo. I think he left that finger there to show she was permanently silenced.”

Burke is charged with first-degree murder with special circumstances, lewd acts with a child under 14 and mutilation of a body. He has pleaded not guilty.