DETROIT – It’s been three months since a Detroit surgeon was shot and killed in his home, and loved ones say investigators aren’t any closer to finding the person responsible.
On April 23, officers conducting a welfare check at the Boston-Edison Historic District home of doctor Devon Hoover found the body of the 53-year-old man wrapped in a sheet in a crawl space. Medical examiners have confirmed Hoover, a well-known neurosurgeon who worked at Ascension Hospital, was shot several times.
Investigators don’t believe Hoover was shot in the attic crawl space, but rather carried there after the shooting. Police believe the person responsible is someone who knows Hoover, as there was no forced entry in the home.
But, so far, no one has been charged in connection with Hoover’s death.
Police had taken a person of interest into custody shortly after the shooting, but that person was released on May 2. Officials said the person of interest was in custody on a warrant unrelated to Hoover’s murder, though Detroit police believed the person had information about what happened.
In May, investigators said that person of interest was still a main focus of their investigation, but nothing has happened since the person was released. Loved ones say investigators don’t currently have any leads in the case.
“No leads ... and the person who committed this crime is still walking around,” said Brian Douglas, an acquaintance of Hoover’s. “This community is still vulnerable -- that means this community, the Boston-Edison community, and also the gay community.”
Crime Stoppers is offering a $2,500 reward to the first person who comes forward with information that leads to an arrest in this case. Hoover’s family and friends have raised an additional $20,000 for the reward. The total reward available is $22,500.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers or the Detroit Police Department.
“You can choose to hide the rest of your life, but we’re really begging with you, choose the freedom of walking in the light,” Hoover’s sister Lila Graber said in June.
From April: Patients, family, friends remember well-known Detroit neurosurgeon from Historic Boston Edison District