Cops Finally Charge Suspect in Grisly Mansion Murder of Beloved Neurosurgeon

The dizzying murder mystery of a beloved Detroit neurosurgeon may finally be coming to a close.

Police in Detroit announced Wednesday that they arrested 34-year-old suspect Desmond Burks in connection with the slaying of Devon Hoover, alleging that Burks was in an “intimate relationship” with Hoover, 53.

The arrest comes 15 months after the initial timeline police promised to make an arrest fell through.

Hoover’s death sent shockwaves across Detroit’s posh Boston-Edison neighborhood where he lived. Police said he was shot in the head twice, and his body—which was wearing only a sock—was wrapped in a sheet and crammed into an attic crawl space inside his historic mansion, which was recently listed for $2.5 million.

Hoover’s loved ones and neighbors told The Daily Beast last year that his murder was all the more shocking because he was beloved by nearly everyone he encountered. He was known to operate on patients for free if they didn’t have the means for surgery and was known in his neighborhood for hosting dinner parties, opera nights, and the occasional wedding.

Detroit prosecutors laid out a clearer picture of Hoover’s murder on Wednesday, saying that Burks had sometimes been paid by Hoover for “sexual services.” After Hoover’s murder, authorities said Burks stole about $30,000 and two watches worth more than $6,000 each.

Burks was identified quickly as a person of interest in the investigation after police said they uncovered he and Hoover had over 4,000 communications between each other. Investigating police did not have enough evidence to formally charge Burks until now, however, said Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy.

“We feel very comfortable, extremely comfortable, at this point in time that we can prove this case beyond a reasonable doubt,” she said.

The prosecutor added that the police arrest report totaled 181 pages, with investigators dispatched to five states, England, and France to track down evidence. She said 134 search warrants were executed.

Worthy may have made a point to lay out the scope of the investigation because officials, namely the Detroit Police Department, were criticized heavily for their lack of answers in the case for over a year. Pressure on the department only increased after its chief promised last summer that a suspect would be arrested before the city experienced its first snowfall in the winter of 2023.

Winter came and went without a suspect being charged, however, and loved ones appeared to lose hope in countless Facebook groups that were created after Hoover’s death. Those same groups were filled with elation on Wednesday, with multiple people posting “Finally” in all caps.

Burks has been charged with first-degree premeditated murder, larceny of over $20,000, and more. Worthy said Burks is the same suspect who was arrested on a separate murder charge for killing a man in a road rage incident after Hoover’s murder. Burks will be arraigned on charges in Hoover’s case on Thursday morning.