Slain Detroit neurosurgeon Devon Hoover was wearing only a black sock on his right foot when his body was discovered last month–the latest unsettling detail to emerge in the beloved doc’s baffling execution.
The revelation was contained in an autopsy obtained by the Detroit Free Press on Wednesday. In it, the medical examiner confirmed Hoover’s official cause of death was two gunshot wounds to his head—one through the back of his skull, the other behind his right ear.
The autopsy also revealed Hoover’s body was dragged face down into a crawl space in his home’s attic, where cops discovered his lifeless body under “a comforter, sheet and rug” during a welfare check on April 23.
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The medical examiner wrote that fingernail clippings and samples for a rape kit were “obtained and retained” at the scene. It’s unclear if the clippings belong to Hoover or someone else.
Cops have indicated they’re still stumped on who killed Hoover, a popular doctor who reportedly lived alone in the ritzy Boston-Edison Historic District of Detroit. They sent out a plea for tips on Tuesday night along with a reward of $1,000 for any information leading to an arrest.
Police initially called Hoover’s slaying a “domestic incident” and later took a “person of interest” into custody. But the person was released days later after undergoing “prosecutorial review.”
Ever since, loved ones and former patients have pleaded in a memorial Facebook group for updates from the police, but none have come. The group has also been used to memorialize Hoover, who many have credited with saving their lives.
Neighbors wrote that they’d remember the 53-year-old for his kindness and extravagant parties he threw at his beautifully maintained historic home.
“He was just the nicest person,” Ann Justice, a neighbor, told Local 4 News. “Never would have thought anything like this would happen to him.”
