Adan Manzano, a 27-year-old sports reporter for KGKC Telemundo Kansas City and Tico Sports, was found dead on February 5, 2025, in his hotel room in Kenner, Louisiana, where he had traveled to cover Super Bowl LIX. The Jefferson Parish coroner ruled that Manzano’s death was caused by the combined toxic effects of Xanax and alcohol along with positional asphyxia after a woman he met in the French Quarter entered his room, drugged him, and stole his phone and credit card. Three people, Danette Colbert, Rickey White, and Christian Anderson, have since been charged in connection with what prosecutors describe as a decade-long scheme to drug and rob tourists in the New Orleans area.
What Happened at the Hotel
Manzano had spent the evening of February 4 out in the French Quarter with coworkers. Security cameras at several locations captured him with a woman later identified as Danette Colbert.1CNN. Super Bowl Telemundo Reporter Death New Orleans Around 4:30 a.m., surveillance footage showed the two entering Manzano’s room at the Comfort Suites Airport hotel on Idaho Avenue in Kenner. Colbert left a short time later, returned briefly, and then departed for the final time around 6:00 a.m. Manzano was never seen leaving.2NOLA.com. Woman Arrested Using Credit Cards of Reporter Who Died While Covering Super Bowl
When Manzano missed a morning meeting, coworkers grew concerned and requested a wellness check around 4:00 p.m. Officers found him dead in the room, face down on a pillow. The coroner noted no obvious signs of trauma.
Cause of Death
Toxicology testing revealed alprazolam, commonly sold as Xanax, in Manzano’s system. He did not have a prescription for the drug.3Today. Adan Manzano Toxicology Report Jefferson Parish Coroner Dr. Gerry Cvitanovich determined the official cause of death to be the “combined toxic effects of Xanax and alcohol along with positional asphyxia.” The manner of death was classified as undetermined because of “uncertain circumstances.”4ABC7. Adan Manzano Super Bowl Reporter’s Cause of Death Revealed
The Three People Charged
Danette Colbert
Investigators noticed quickly that Manzano’s cellphone and the credit card he used to check into the hotel were missing. They tracked the credit card to local stores and traced his phone to a location near Colbert’s home in Slidell, Louisiana. Colbert, then 48, was arrested on February 6, 2025.5The Guardian. Adan Manzano Reporter Death Arrest A search of her residence turned up Manzano’s phone and credit card, along with Xanax and a stolen firearm unrelated to the case.
She was initially booked on theft, fraud, and related property crimes. After toxicology confirmed Xanax in Manzano’s system, she was booked on March 18, 2025 on a charge of second-degree murder. Prosecutors alleged she intentionally drugged Manzano so she could steal his phone, bypass its security with text-message codes, and access his bank accounts.6KMBC. Kansas City Sports Reporter Adan Manzano Drugged, Text Evidence Court Suspects
Rickey White
Rickey White, 35, was identified as Colbert’s longtime accomplice. Investigators described him as the person who provided transportation and logistical support while Colbert targeted victims. He was arrested in Hollywood, Florida, in March 2025, extradited to Jefferson Parish, and held without bond on robbery and fraud charges.7ABC News. Text Messages Yearslong Scheme Super Bowl Reporter Death A judge found probable cause that White acted as a principal to Colbert, citing roughly 30 phone calls between the two and the fact that Colbert shared Manzano’s PIN with White.
Christian Anderson
Christian Anderson, 33, of New Orleans, was arrested in late May 2025. According to the Kenner Police Department, Anderson rented the car Colbert used the day of Manzano’s death, remained in contact with her afterward, and helped attempt to profit from Manzano’s stolen property and financial accounts.8ABC News. 3rd Person Arrested in Connection With Death of Telemundo Super Bowl Reporter He was charged with being a principal to simple robbery, purse snatching, access device fraud, illegal transmission of monetary funds, bank fraud, and computer fraud.9Fox 8 Live. Third Arrest Made in Death of Super Bowl Reporter Adan Manzano
The Text Messages That Tied Them Together
Detectives recovered messages from Colbert’s phone that prosecutors say reveal the mechanics of the scheme. On the night Manzano died, Colbert texted White: “Got the phone code. He got money. Waiting for him to sleep.”6KMBC. Kansas City Sports Reporter Adan Manzano Drugged, Text Evidence Court Suspects Investigators also identified the phrase “knock out” in earlier messages between Colbert and White, which they interpreted as a signal that Colbert was with a victim and prepared to administer drugs. Detectives found at least two other “knock out” exchanges in the pair’s communications.
Prosecutors also cited a June 2019 message in which Anderson wrote that he “throws tricks on people in the car and gives them Xanax water to put them to sleep.”10Fox 8 Live. Prosecutors Tie Reporter’s Death to Decade-Long Drugging Robbery Scheme
A Decade-Long Drugging and Robbery Scheme
Manzano’s death exposed what authorities describe as a criminal operation stretching back at least a decade. A 20-plus page indictment from the 24th Judicial District Court in Jefferson Parish outlined a scheme beginning in 2012 in which Colbert, White, and Anderson lured victims from the French Quarter to hotel rooms and residences in the Metairie area, drugged them, and stole their property.10Fox 8 Live. Prosecutors Tie Reporter’s Death to Decade-Long Drugging Robbery Scheme The indictment described Colbert as the one who approached victims, White as a pimp who handled logistics, and Anderson as a pimp and drug supplier.
Prosecutors listed 18 specific thefts in the New Orleans area. The group is accused of stealing at least 15 cellphones, 29 credit and debit cards, and more than $131,000 in cash. Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams said victims would typically share drinks or food with Colbert, who would then offer to help them back to their room before drugging and robbing them.7ABC News. Text Messages Yearslong Scheme Super Bowl Reporter Death
Michelle Foster of the Metropolitan Crime Commission said the scheme persisted for so long in part because many victims were tourists or men reluctant to report crimes involving a prostitute, leaving the total number of victims unknown. After Colbert’s arrest in the Manzano case, police said they received a dozen complaints from people who believed they or their loved ones had been victimized by her.1CNN. Super Bowl Telemundo Reporter Death New Orleans
Colbert had a lengthy record before Manzano died. She had two prior guilty pleas for fraud and theft in Jefferson Parish and had been charged in Clark County, Nevada, with grand larceny and administering a drug to aid in the commission of a felony in two separate cases. Both Nevada cases were dismissed after victims declined to testify.11NBC News. Woman Linked to Super Bowl Reporter’s Death
One earlier victim, David Butler, said he met Colbert at a French Quarter bar on November 6, 2021. After he stepped away from his drink and returned to finish it, he became disoriented. Colbert helped him into an SUV, and he lost consciousness. While he was incapacitated, Colbert used his biometrics to unlock his phone and transferred roughly $85,000 in cryptocurrency from his Coinbase wallet, plus additional credit card charges, for a total theft of $134,000.12CNN. Previous Victim Warned Super Bowl Reporter Murder Suspect Could Kill Somebody Butler said he was “left for dead.” An Orleans Parish jury convicted Colbert of theft, computer fraud, and illegally transmitting monetary funds in October 2024, and Judge Nandi Campbell suspended her sentence, granting five years of probation and ordering restitution.13Fox 8 Live. Previous Victim Speaks Out as Police Investigate Kansas City Reporter’s Death Manzano died roughly three months later.
Where the Case Stands
In July 2025, the Jefferson Parish District Attorney’s Office announced plans to file racketeering charges against all three defendants, framing the case as a coordinated criminal enterprise rather than an isolated incident.14Fox 8 Live. Racketeering Charges Likely in Death of Sports Reporter Adan Manzano Legal analyst Joe Raspanti said the racketeering approach lets the state tie Anderson and White to Manzano’s death and expose all three to sentences of up to 50 years. Commissioner David Wolff, who presided over earlier proceedings, noted that while there may not be evidence of “intentional homicide,” the prosecution’s theory is that Manzano died as a result of the defendants’ ongoing pattern of illegal behavior.
The original second-degree murder charges against Colbert and White were downgraded to manslaughter, and Anderson was added to the manslaughter count. All three now face manslaughter and racketeering charges.10Fox 8 Live. Prosecutors Tie Reporter’s Death to Decade-Long Drugging Robbery Scheme
On January 5, 2026, attorneys for Colbert, White, and Anderson appeared in court and rejected a “package” plea deal that would have required the three defendants to serve 60 years in prison collectively.15Fox 8 Live. Three Suspects in Kansas City Reporter’s Death Reject Plea Deal All three remain in custody in Jefferson Parish. A plea status hearing for Anderson and White was scheduled for January 26, 2026, and a motion hearing for all three defendants was set for January 29, 2026.16The Kansas City Star. Suspects in Adan Manzano Death Reject Plea Deal
Who Adan Manzano Was
Originally from Mexico City, Manzano moved to Topeka, Kansas, in 2018 and graduated from Kansas State University. He joined KGKC Telemundo Kansas City as a sports anchor and reporter in April 2021 and also worked as a broadcaster for Tico Sports, providing sideline coverage for the Kansas City Chiefs’ Spanish-language broadcast and calling play-by-play for the KC Current soccer team.17KMBC. Kansas City Sports Anchor Dead in New Orleans for Super Bowl He had won multiple awards from the Kansas Association of Broadcasters, and the Super Bowl LIX trip was his third consecutive Super Bowl assignment.18NBC News. Adan Manzano Death: KC Reporter Remembered
His death came less than a year after his wife, Ashleigh LeeAnn Boyd, a 24-year-old second-grade teacher at Lowman Hill Elementary School in Topeka, died in a head-on car collision on April 11, 2024.19Today. Adan Manzano Wife The couple’s young daughter survived the crash, and Manzano had been raising her as a single father in the months before his own death.20CJOnline. Reporter With Topeka Ties Adan Manzano Dies in NOLA Before Super Bowl