Adan Manzano Obituary, Death; – The Louisiana woman linked to the death of a Kansas City sports reporter may have left a trail of victims. Adan Manzano, an anchor and reporter on assignment to cover the Super Bowl in New Orleans, was found dead in a hotel on Feb. 5.
Danette Colbert, 48, was arrested after attempting to use Manzano’s cards at stores in New Orleans. Police said that security footage at the hotel shows Manzano and Colbert in the French Quarter before the pair ended up in his hotel room.
Authorities said the video shows Colbert leaving Manzano’s room alone. Colbert so far is only facing property crime charges, but detectives are looking into the possibility that she drugged Manzano before his death.
While authorities await Manzano’s toxicology results, an alleged previous victim of Colbert is speaking out about his near-fatal encounter with her. David Butler, who said he was drugged and left for dead by Colbert in 2021, feared she would strike again.
On Nov. 5, 2021, Butler went to the French Quarter to unwind after working on a renovation project. Around 1 a.m., he met Colbert and another person. “They were just standing around outside talking with some other people and asked me if I wanted to go in and have a drink. I was like sure,” Butler said.
He remembers leaving his first drink on the table while ordering another. Moments later, things took a turn. “When I started on my second drink, I started feeling very strange just within a matter of minutes,” Butler recalled. “I was woozy. I felt like the world around me was going dark and I knew there was something really wrong.”
Butler said he knew he needed to leave, and at that time, Colbert followed him out and offered to help him get home. He said she loaded him into an SUV, and they took off. “At that point, my decision-making abilities were significantly impaired,” Butler said.
His project manager later found him unresponsive at the renovation site after family members couldn’t reach him. He was vigorously awoken and instead of going to the hospital, despite feeling drugged, he began checking his finances.
“There were multiple emails that showed cryptocurrency funds were transferred out of my bank account,” said Butler. It was discovered that Colbert used his biometrics to access his iPhone whenever he was under the influence. Butler said Colbert stole a total of $134,000 from his retirement account and through credit card charges. Butler said the funds went to a crypto account with a unique username, leading him to Colbert’s public Facebook page.
Butler then contacted the New Orleans Police Department.
“When I met Ms. Colbert and her associate, I mean there was no mention of prostitution,” Butler said. “There was nothing that seemed inappropriate or out of the ordinary in that realm.” Colbert was eventually caught, and last October, a jury found her guilty of theft, computer fraud and illegally transmitting monetary funds. However, she avoided jail time.
The judge suspended her sentence, granting her probation and ordering her to pay restitution. “I felt like there was a grave injustice done for society and public safety,” Butler said. Butler says he pushed for jail time and wrote to the judge, expressing dismay over the lenient sentencing.
According to Kenner Police Chief Keith Conley, Colbert was also booked on similar charges in Las Vegas and Jefferson Parish. Police also said Colbert might be connected to a December 2024 death at a French Quarter hotel. Butler believes if Colbert were behind bars, Manzano might still be alive.
“I feel a tremendous amount of guilt because I did everything that I feel like I could have done to put her away and it didn’t happen,” Butler said.
