Massive amount of evidence leads to charges against Detroit man
DETROIT (FOX 2) – A man accused of murdering well-known Detroit neurosurgeon Devon Hoover is now facing charges following an investigation that spanned multiple states and countries.
Desmond Burks, 34, is charged with first-degree premeditated murder, felony murder, larceny over $20,000, felon in possession of a firearm, and three counts of felony firearm for the April 2023 murder of Hoover at his Boston Edison home.
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Hoover, 53, was found shot to death and wrapped in a bloody carpet in the attic of his home on April 23, 2023, a day after his Range Rover was parked outside another Detroit home.
Police went to Hoover’s house after the vehicle was found, but no one answered. They returned the next day and found his body, face down, wearing only socks, after his family requested a welfare check because he missed a trip to visit his dying mother in Indiana.
Hoover was shot twice in the head, an autopsy concluded.
The discovery spurred an investigation that lasted more than a year as authorities worked to gather enough evidence to charge Burks. Worthy said Burks was the original person of interest. He was questioned and released, initially, because they needed more evidence to advance the case.
“Dr. Hoover had approximately 4,000 communications with a number attributed to Desmond Burks,” Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said during a news conference on Wednesday. “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 that a massive amount of evidence was part of the investigation that spanned five states – Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Texas, and California – and three countries – the U.S., France, and England, though she declined to say how those other locations were tied to the case.
Worthy also noted that the nature of the relationship made some witnesses hesitant to come forward with information.
Burks is also facing murder charges stemming from an April 2024 road rage shooting that left a 67-year-old Dearborn man named Reda Saleh dead. Worthy said this case was not connected to the investigation into Hoover’s murder.
She referenced hours of video evidence and other physical evidence that linked Burks to the doctor’s murder.
Worthy didn’t go into detail about a motive, but she did note that Hoover’s designer watches and credit cards were missing after his murder, and those credit cards were used to make fraudulent purchases.
She called the case a “massive investigation” as she ran through the evidence investigators analyzed.
Worthy said the case involved interviews with nearly 90 witnesses, more than 300 pieces of evidence, 134 search warrants, and hours worth of video footage from security cameras and police body cameras. She said more than 70 law enforcement officers helped with cracking this case.
Burks, who was previously in prison for arson and felony firearm, is now being held in the Wayne County Jail on a $1 million bond. He is expected to be arraigned on Thursday, on multiple felony charges, for Hoover’s murder.
The beloved neurosurgeon’s family released a statement following the announcement of charges against Burks.
“Today, we feel relief for a step towards justice. We feel grateful for the dedicated teamwork and sacrifice of the Detroit Police Department. Most of all, we feel the loss of Devon once again,” according to Hoover’s relatives. “He was an exceptional man – a doctor, brother, son, uncle, and friend who invested in our lives with unwavering kindness and generosity.
“Although nothing will ever reverse our loss, we are grateful that someone will be held accountable for Devon’s death.”
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