DETROIT – Officials provided a major update Wednesday in the mysterious murder of a well-known Detroit neurosurgeon whose body was found wrapped in a carpet in his attic more than 15 months ago.
🗓️ TIMELINE: Full timeline of popular neurosurgeon’s murder in Detroit
SUV found on Detroit’s west side
On April 22, 2023, Detroit police officers received a parking complaint in the 9900 block of Coyle Street, which is on Detroit’s far west side.
Officers found a white Range Rover blocking a driveway. When they investigated the SUV, they saw blood on the inside.
They towed it to a Detroit police tow yard and learned that the registered owner was Dr. Devon Hoover, 53, of Detroit. Hoover lived on West Boston Boulevard in the Boston-Edison District -- about five miles away from where the SUV was found.
Dr. Devon Hoover found dead at home
Officers went to Hoover’s home that evening and saw that the driveway gate leading to the back of the house was wide open. They couldn’t get ahold of anyone at the house when they knocked on the front or back doors, they said.
The next day, Detroit police received a 911 call from Hoover’s family member in Indiana. That person requested a welfare check at Hoover’s home because Hoover had failed to show up to see his dying mother in Indiana, according to Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy.
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When officers went to the house, the gate was still open. They noticed blood on the side of the back door and forced their way inside.
Hoover’s body was found in the third-floor attic crawl space.
“He was face-down,” Worthy said. “He was only wearing socks. He was wrapped in a blood-soaked carpet. He appeared to have been shot in the head.”
An autopsy concluded that Hoover had been killed by two gunshots to the head.
Investigation into sexual partner
Police said Hoover’s cellphone, wallet, money, and credit cards were missing from the home, as well as at least one watch.
Almost immediately after Hoover’s death, fraudulent transactions showed up on his bank accounts and continued for several days, Worthy said.
Cellphone records showed Hoover had exchanged about 4,000 text messages with a phone number attributed to Desmond Burks, a 34-year-old man who lives in the 9900 block of Sussex Street on Detroit’s west side.
That home is right next to where police found the Range Rover on Coyle Street.
“The text messages established that Desmond Burks and Dr. Hoover were in an intimate relationship with one another, and that, on occasion, Desmond Burks would charge Dr. Hoover for these sexual services,” Worthy said.
On the day of Hoover’s murder, cellphone data showed that his phone had traveled from his house to the area of Burks’ home on Sussex Street. The phone returned to Hoover’s home, went back to the area of Burks’ home, and then traveled to Fairlane Mall in Dearborn.
The phone never returned back to Hoover’s home after that point, Worthy said.
“Numerous pieces of corroborative evidence place Dr. Hoover’s cellphone in the same location as Desmond Burks,” Worthy said.
During their investigation, officials said they found an image of Burks parking the Range Rover in the area of Coyle Street. He left a fingerprint in the SUV and was seen limping away and carrying a backpack.
Worthy said Burks was known to be walking with a limp at that time because he had been shot in the hip.
When officials searched Burks’ home, they found one of Hoover’s Cartier watches. They learned about another home linked to Burks in April 2024 and found a $7,500 watch that Hoover had purchased the day before his death.
Charges
Worthy confirmed that Burks was the person of interest who was taken into custody in this case on April 28, 2023, and released on May 2, 2023.
Burks is facing the following charges:
- First-degree premeditated murder.
- Felony murder.
- Larceny of over $20,000.
- Using a computer to commit a crime.
- Possession of a firearm by a felon.
- Three second-offense felony firearm violations -- one attached to each of the premeditated murder, felony murder, and firearm possession charges.
Burks is currently being held at the Wayne County Jail on a $1 million bond, no 10%, due to a separate case (more details on that below).
His lawyer requested on May 24, 2024, that Burks be examined for competency. A competency review hearing is scheduled for Sept. 3, 2024, in front of Judge Kenneth King in 36th District Court.
Burks is scheduled to be arraigned in connection to Hoover’s death at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Aug. 8, 2024.
Extensive investigation
Worthy opened Wednesday’s briefing by putting numbers on the extent of this investigation.
It’s been more than 15 months since Hoover was found dead in his home. In that time, Worthy said the murder investigation spanned five states -- Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Texas, and California -- and three countries -- the United States, England, and France.
The investigator’s report is 181 pages long. At least 71 officers worked on the case, including some from each of the local, state, interstate, and federal levels.
Police have talked to at least 87 witnesses and analyzed more than 77 pieces of body camera evidence that spanned hundreds of hours, in total.
The investigation included surveillance footage from 24 different locations and 44 video interviews that span a total of more than 100 hours in length.
Worthy said officials examined more than 40 cellphones that contained over 2 terabytes of data combined.
More than 300 pieces of evidence were collected, and police performed 134 searches. A total of 94 items were sent to the Michigan State Police crime lab for analysis.
Worthy said the investigation was further complicated because several witnesses were “extremely reluctant” to share sensitive and personal information.
Break-in at home
Someone broke into Hoover’s home during the night of April 29 into April 30 -- about a week after his murder.
Officials didn’t reveal what, if anything, was stolen from the home. No update on the break-in was provided during Wednesday’s briefing.
Hoover’s funeral was held at 1 p.m. April 30, hours after the break-in.
Deadly road rage case
Burks is also facing charges in a completely unrelated road rage case.
Officials said Reda Saleh, 67, of Dearborn, bumped into the back of the car Burks was driving around 6:45 p.m. April 17, 2024, at the intersection of West Chicago Street and Greenfield Road in Detroit.
Saleh and Burks got out and began to argue. Police said Burks punched Saleh and left him lying in the street.
Officials found Saleh unresponsive with a serious head injury. He was rushed to a nearby hospital, but he died on May 11.
Burks was arrested May 15 and charged with second-degree murder. His $1 million bond required him to remain on house arrest and wear a GPS tether, if released.
Full timeline
Here is a clearer breakdown of the full timeline surrounding Burks and this case.
- April 22, 2023: Police receive first call about Hoover’s Range Rover.
- April 23, 2023: Police find Hoover dead inside his home.
- April 28, 2023: Burks brought in as person of interest in Hoover’s case.
- April 29-April 30, 2023: Someone breaks into Hoover’s home.
- April 30, 2023: Hoover’s funeral.
- May 2, 2023: Burks released from custody.
- April 17, 2024: Burks accused of punching Saleh during road rage encounter.
- May 11, 2024: Saleh dies from injuries.
- May 15, 2024: Burks arrested and charged in deadly road rage case.
- May 24, 2024: Lawyer requests competency examination for Burks.
- Aug. 7, 2024: Burks charged in Hoover murder case.
- Aug. 8, 2024: Arraignment for Burks on Hoover murder charges.
- Sept. 3, 2024: Competency review hearing for Burks.
Why announce charges now?
Worthy and Detroit police Chief James White were asked Wednesday why they decided now was the time to announce charges.
They said they have gotten to a good place in the investigation, and they feel comfortable charging Burks in the case.
“We feel extremely comfortable at this point in time that we can prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt,” Worthy said. “But it was a lot of work to even get to this space.”
