On April 23, police found the body of Dr. Devon Hoover, 53, wrapped in a sheet in the attic of his home. Hoover, a notable neurosurgeon, lived alone in a large home in the historic Boston-Edison District of Detroit.
A welfare check was requested when he did not respond to calls or meet with family members in Indiana as expected on April 22. Police report that Hoover was shot inside his home, and they recovered his abandoned vehicle several miles away.
Police have not revealed a motive or information on possible suspects.
On Wednesday, April 10, police reported that Hoover had been shot twice in the head, then dragged naked into the attic. The Detroit Free Press reported that Hoover was “shot behind his right ear and then again in the back of the head.”
Hoover was on staff at Ascension Michigan Hospital. A spokesperson told Fox News Digital: “Devon Hoover, MD, was a dedicated and well-respected member of the Ascension Michigan family and will be greatly missed by our community.”
The hospital added: “Our sincerest condolences and heartfelt prayers are with his family, friends, and fellow associates during this incredibly difficult time.”
Police have released few details in the ongoing homicide investigation, though a person of interest was temporarily detained on April 28. Detroit Police Chief James White indicated Hoover’s death may be connected to a “domestic dispute,” adding, “it was not a random act.”
Fox News reported that many in the Detroit “community are stunned at Hoover’s death.”
A neighbor told Fox 2 Detroit: “That man was an angel. He was beautiful. Everybody was shocked. My phone has been blowing up … I was like, no, no, no.”
RTM previously reported that a former patient named Julia told WXYZ: “I went on Facebook, and I saw his picture and thought, oh, he must’ve gotten an award. So I put my glasses on, and my daughter was outside with the dog, and I just started screaming, ‘Oh, my God. Oh, my God.'”
Adam Walder remembered Hoover as a great physician, telling WXYZ, “Not only was he a fantastic surgeon but just a wonderful human being.”
Walder added: “Those three days in the hospital [after surgery], he’d come in the morning to check on you, call you after your discharge to check on you. You just don’t see that anymore.”
A relative, Winston Lechlitner wrote on Facebook: “I’m inspired by Uncle Devon’s kindness to everyone. It’s such a tragic loss and still many unknowns, and yet, I think these all dim in the reality of the fact that his life, even though ended too soon, positively impacted literally hundreds and hundreds, if not thousands, of people.”
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