He said she gave him drugs and could kill someone. Now she is accused of murdering a Super Bowl journalist

Sports journalist Adan Manzano was found dead in his New Orleans-area hotel room while covering the Super Bowl Lix. The former victim of the woman accused of murder warned that such a crime could occur.

Police announced Tuesday that Danette Colbert, formerly known as Kenner Police's “professional offender” known for New Orleans fraud schemes, was charged with second-degree murder in Manzano's death.

A lawyer representing Colbert declined to comment. CNN cannot determine whether attorneys represent Colbert in the case of 27-year-old Manzano, who worked at the local Tremondo station in Kansas City and went to New Orleans to report the Super Bowl when he was found dead last month.

Kenner Police Chief Keith Conley had previously said Colbert had “a considerable amount of records and rap sheets.”

Some of the charges stem from 52-year-old David Butler, who accused Colbert of robbing him and robbing him in New Orleans three years ago.

In a Kenner Police Department news release Tuesday, police wrote that there was evidence that Colbert and a colleague usually used substances including Xanax to take drugs.

According to Jefferson Parish Coroner Gerald Cvitanovich, the Jefferson Parish Coroner Gerald Cvitanovich, Manzano died of the “combination of toxic effects” of Xanax and alcohol. Cvitanovich said the way Manzano died remains uncertain.

Detectives believe Colbert gave Manzano drugs in order to rob him when he lost consciousness.

In Butler's case, a jury found Colbert guilty of theft, computer fraud and illegal transmission of money funds. But Orleans Parish Criminal Court Judge Nandi Campbell approved Colbert’s probation and ordered her to compensate, allowing Colbert to avoid jail time.

Last week, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said her office believes the sentence “is not eligible for probation” in such circumstances and will raise Colbert’s sentence under the Customary Criminal Regulations.

Butler said in a statement to CNN that he was “very grateful to Attorney General Liz Murrill for intervening” to challenge his case. He had previously expressed disappointment in the “leniency of sentence” in a letter to Judge Campbell in December.

“When Ms. Colbert re-offends the statistics that she might have, how will the court answer the inevitable question: Why does someone have a life-threatening history give another chance? If someone dies due to future actions, their blood will undeniably rely on the person she escapes today,” he wrote in a letter obtained by CNN, in which he wrote. ”

After discovering Colbert was charged with second-degree murder, Butler wrote in a statement to CNN on Tuesday: “If my case is properly sentenced, then Manzano – probably someone else, may still be judged.

In 2022, Colbert was arrested in Las Vegas on felony charges for grand theft and took drugs to help the felony offender, court records show. In both cases, she was accused of taking drugs in their hotel room and stealing from them. Daniel Lippmann told the Associated Press that the allegations were dismissed because the victim did not want to testify in court.

“The world has become dark”

Butler previously told CNN that he was renovating a home in New Orleans when he met Colbert next to the French region around 1 a.m. on November 6, 2021.

Colbert and another woman ask Butler if he wants to have a drink with them. Butler agreed and bought a round of drinks at the bar, and he prefers to name the bar’s privacy.

When they finished the first round of drinks, Butler walked off the table for a minute and bought the second round.

At that time, he said, the woman with Colbert walked away.

When he returned to the table, he finished what was left of his first drink with Colbert and started a second cup. He said he began to feel disoriented almost immediately.

He said: “The world is getting dark. I feel sleepy, I just know something isn't for me, a little panic, you know? Like, I have to go back to where I live.”

He said Colbert took Butler to a black suburban SUV sitting outside the bar when he tried to leave. That was the last thing he remembered.

A friend woke up at his home that night. Butler didn't know how he got there, he said. He felt that he “didn’t know which planet he was on” and described the feeling as waking up from general anesthesia.

Butler's phone and money bag disappeared. He said Colbert stole $134,000 from him — about $85,000 from a cryptocurrency account, with the rest of the credit card fees.

He told CNN that after the incident, he regretted not going to the hospital.

“At the time, it didn't even really cross my mind. I mean, I was more worried about trying to find out who stole my money,” he said.

When he reported the burglary to the New Orleans Police Department, he said the officer questioned whether he really wanted to submit a formal report.

“You know, he's implying that I'm trying to hire Miss Colbert as a prostitute. He said, 'You know, it's going to be a public record that your family will find out,” Butler said. “I had to be truly confident at the time to accept my report.”

Butler said the interaction had nothing to do with prostitution. Instead, he explained that he loved New Orleans culture, people often make friends with strangers and share friendly drinks.

Within days, Butler found Colbert's identity and handed it over to police, he said.

He said Colbert transferred the cryptocurrency from Butler's Coinbase wallet to her Coinbase wallet so he could see her username. He explained that he entered her Coinbase username in Google and found her Facebook account.

He also wrote in the Victim Impact Statement that he had suffered “physical and emotional trauma” from the incident.

“When my friend finally found me, he thought I might have been dead, and even though I had regained consciousness, I felt lost and unable to think clearly. Ordeal was a nightmare that I had not yet fully woken up.”

Butler said he also suffered from survivors’ guilt.

“I'm spending all day with me every day. I check her name once a week or every other week because I know she's going to kill someone.”

Chris Youd and Chris Boyette of CNN contributed to the report. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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