Celeste Rivas Death Investigation Focuses on Runaway Past, 'Troubled Home'

Celeste Rivas, the 15-year-old girl found dead in the trunk of singer D4vd's Tesla, ran away "multiple times" because of trouble at home ... law enforcement sources tell TMZ.

LAPD's Robbery Homicide Division has been tracking Celeste's history, and they are trying to piece together the story of her life, according to our sources.

We're told the Lake Elsinore family contacted Riverside County law enforcement at least twice to report Celeste missing.

Our sources say homicide detectives believe there's lots of evidence Celeste comes from a "troubled home," and that may have triggered her desire to run away.

TMZ has spoken to a liquor store owner near where Celeste's school bus picked her up, and he says there was one instance -- March 19, 2024 -- where Celeste's sister came to his store to review surveillance footage in an attempt to trace Celeste's steps after she ran away.

As we reported, her middle school teacher told TMZ Celeste had run away back in January 2024. The teacher says police found her in the Hollywood Hills a month later and took her home. It's worth noting D4vd lives in the Hollywood Hills. Celeste then went missing for the last time in April 2024.

What's unclear is if the family called cops in Hollywood when Celeste disappeared in spring 2024, to find out where she had been staying when they found her in February.

Our sources say the way Celeste was able to navigate on her own was by having "multiple fake ID's," in an attempt to present much older than she was.

Before police were able to identify Celeste's body, TMZ got a tip that she was the victim found in D4vd's Tesla. We contacted her mom, who told us about a red tattoo Celeste had on her right index finger. The mother added that her daughter was dating a guy named David. We passed the information on to LAPD's Robbery Homicide Division, and days later, police identified her as the victim.

It's apparent police think Celeste might have been killed inside the home D4vd was staying at, because they obtained a search warrant allowing them to search for blood evidence inside the residence. We do not know what if anything police discovered.