Man Who Allegedly Had Intimate Relationship With Neurosurgeon Charged With His Murder

A Michigan man who was in an alleged intimate relationship with a Detroit neurosurgeon was charged with murder more than a year after the surgeon was found fatally shot in his own home, authorities said.

Desmond Burks, 34, was charged with offenses including premeditated murder, felony murder and larceny in the death of Dr. Devon Hoover, 53. Prosecutors accused Burks of killing the neurosurgeon last year and robbing him of thousands of dollars along with his luxury watches, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office announced Wednesday.

The investigation began on April 22, 2023, when Detroit police received a call about a parking violation. Officers found Hoover’s white Land Rover blocking a driveway, and inside the vehicle, they discovered what appeared to be blood.

Detectives investigating the car went to Hoover’s home that evening to find the driveway gate wide open. No one responded when detectives knocked on the front and back doors.

The next day, police received a call from Hoover’s family requesting a well-being check at his home after he did not show up to visit his mother in Indiana as planned, according to prosecutors.

Officers returned to Hoover’s home and noticed what they believed to be blood at the back entrance, prosecutors said, and they went inside.

Hoover was found dead in the attic crawl space, wrapped in a blood-soaked carpet, according to prosecutors. At the time of discovery, police noted that the doctor had gunshot wounds to his head and was only wearing socks.

The medical examiner’s office determined that Hoover was shot twice in the back of the head, and ruled his manner of death a homicide.

Detectives learned that Hoover’s cellphone, wallet, money, credit cards and designer watches were missing from