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Statement of Prosecutor Kym Worthy

"This investigation was conducted for over a year in conjunction with local, Wayne County Prosecutor's Office investigators, state and federal law enforcement agents and spanning five states and three countries. I want to thank Wayne County Prosecutor's Office Detectives Kelly McLaughlin and Rick Pomorski, as well as Executive Assistant Krista Chludzinski for their dedicated and tireless work. Volumes of documents and evidence were recovered, analyzed, scrutinized, and then summarized. There are several terabytes worth of digital data. It was a massive undertaking, and today we are pleased to announce that Desmond Burks, 34, of Detroit, is being charged with the murder of Dr. Devon Hoover," said Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy.

"The case will be prosecuted by Wayne County Assistant Prosecutors Lisa Lindsey and Michael Glynne. We will continue to work tirelessly to bring justice to the Hoover family."

Statement of Detroit Police Chief James White

Detroit Police Chief James White said, "I want to thank Prosecutor Kym Worthy and her team for their collaboration and their careful evaluation of this case," said Chief James E. White. "Thank you to the hardworking women and men of the Detroit Police Homicide Section for their incredible work on this very comprehensive investigation. Thank you to the family, friends and loved ones of Dr. Devon Hoover for their trust and patience as our officers carried out this investigation. The loss of Dr. Hoover remains a tragedy that has left a void in our community."

Summary of the Case

On April 22, 2023, Detroit Police received a civilian parking complaint and dispatched officers to the area of 9901 Coyle Street in Detroit. Officers arrived and observed a white Land Rover blocking a driveway. They investigated further and noticed what appeared to be blood on the interior of the vehicle. They secured the Range Rover, tagged it as evidence and took it to the Detroit Police Department tow yard. The registered owner of the Range Rover was discovered to be Dr. Devon Hoover of 150 W. Boston Boulevard Detroit, MI. Detroit police officers went to 150 W. Boston Boulevard that same evening and noted the driveway gate leading to the rear of the house to be wide open. They were unable to contact anyone at the residence when knocking on both the front and back doors and left.

On April 23, 2023, Detroit Police received a 911 call from Dr. Hoover's family requesting a wellbeing check at Dr. Hoover's house as they had been unable to reach him after he failed to show up in Indiana to visit his mother. Detroit police officers went to his house and noticed the driveway gate leading to the rear of the house wide open. Further investigation revealed the presence of what appeared to be blood on the rear exterior side of the back entrance door of the home. A decision was made to force entry into the premises.

During a protective sweep of the home, the victim, Devon Hoover, was found deceased in the third-floor attic crawl space, facedown, wearing only socks, wrapped in a blood-soaked carpet. He appeared to have been shot in the head.

The Wayne County Medical Examiner's Office conducted the autopsy and concluded Dr. Hoover was shot twice in the back of the head. It was determined that death was caused by two gunshot wounds to the head and the manner of death was homicide.

After the discovery of Dr. Hoover, Detroit Police Crime Scene Services Unit arrived and processed the scene. Subsequent investigation revealed the victim's cell phone, wallet, money, financial transaction devices (credit cards) and designer watches were missing from the home. The investigation revealed that almost immediately following Dr. Hoover's murder, multiple fraudulent financial transactions were made from his various financial accounts. These transactions continued for several days afterwards.

An analysis of the victim's cell phone records revealed that Dr. Hoover had approximately 4,000 communications with a number attributed to Desmond Burks who resided in the 9900 block of Sussex in the City of Detroit. The text messages establish that Desmond Burks and Dr. Hoover were in an intimate relationship with one another and on occasion Desmond Burks would charge Dr. Hoover for sexual services. The investigation was further complicated by the fact that many witnesses were reluctant to come forward to share sensitive and personal information.

The analysis also indicates on the day Dr. Hoover was murdered, that Dr. Hoover's phone travelled from his W. Boston Boulevard address to the area of Desmond Burks address on Sussex. Dr. Hoover's phone appeared to return to W. Boston Boulevard for a short period, then back to the area of Desmond Burks' residence on Sussex again, before traveling to Fairlane Mall in Dearborn, Michigan. Dr. Hoover's cell phone never returned to his residence.

Numerous pieces of corroborating evidence place Dr. Hoover's cell phone in the same location as Desmond Burks. The evidence includes Dr. Hoover's cellular call detail records, search engine account record; Desmond Burks' cellular call detail records, Range Rover geolocation data, Project Greenlight video, 9900 block of Coyle Street surveillance video, and jewelry store surveillance video.

Other physical evidence was discovered directly linking Dr. Hoover's property to Desmond Burks. On the date of the homicide, Desmond Burks is seen on surveillance camera parking Hoover's Range Rover near the 9900 block of Coyle Street. He is seen limping away carrying a backpack and his fingerprint was discovered inside the Range Rover. At the time, Desmond Burks was known to walk with a limp due to previously being shot in the hip. Investigation conducted by the Detroit Police Department at Desmond Burks' residence led to the recovery of Dr. Hoover's "Ballon Bleu" Cartier watch. Additional investigation conducted on another recently discovered address of Desmond Burks in April 2024, lead to the discovery of Dr. Hoover's "Pasha" Cartier watch, a watch Dr. Hoover purchased one day before he was murdered.

This case took over a year to investigate and this list will give insight into the entities and the vast amount of information involved.

• States: Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Texas, and California
• Countries: United States, England, and France
• Law Enforcement Officers: Approximately: 71+ (Local, State, Interstate, Federal, WCPO)
• Civilians: Approximately 87+
• Body Worn Cameras : 77 body worn cameras (Hundreds of hours of video)
• Video Interviews: 44 (Over 100 hours of video)
• Video Surveillance Videos: 24 different locations & numerous greenlight surveillance video locations (Over 100 hours' worth of video)
• Cell Phone Extractions: 57
• Pieces of Evidence Collected: Over 300
• Search Warrants Executed: 134+
• Items sent to Michigan State Police Crime Lab for Testing: 94
• Value of Range Rover: $72,336 - $81,177 according to Kelly Blue Book
• Cash App and Bank Fraud Information: over $30,000
• Cartier Watches Price: Cartier "Ballon Bleu" Watch ($6,625 - purchased on 01/04/2020), Cartier "Pasha" Watch ( $7,323.54 - purchased on 04/21/23), the day before Dr. Hoover was murdered.
• Total Data Retrieved: Several terabytes of data
• The Investigator's Report is 181 pages. The investigator's report has been sealed by the court to protect the integrity of the prosecution.
  

Based on this evidence and further evidence which will be presented on the record in court, it is alleged that Desmond Burks killed Dr. Devon Hoover with premeditation and deliberation and stole the victim's property in the process.

Burks has been charged with First-Degree Premeditated Murder, Felony Murder, Larceny of $20,000+, Using a Computer to Commit a Crime, Felon in Possession of a Firearm, and three counts of Felony Firearm.*

Arrangements will be made in the future for Burks to be arraigned on the current charges in 36th District Court. Please contact the Detroit Police Department for a photograph of the defendant.

*The charges are allegations and defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

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