60 and 45-Year Sentences in Death of Telemundo Reporter Adan Manzano
Louisiana state court Judge Nancy Miller sentenced Danette Colbert to 60 years in prison and Rickey White to 45 years on Monday, 28 September, in connection with the death of Telemundo Kansas City journalist Adan Manzano. The Guardian
Colbert, 49, received 50 years for racketeering and a consecutive 10 years for negligent homicide in Manzano's death. Racketeering is a charge for carrying out a pattern of crimes as part of a group. Consecutive means the 10-year term is served after the 50-year term. White, 35, received 45 years' imprisonment for racketeering. A jury in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, had convicted both defendants for their roles in the 5 February 2025 death.
Manzano was 27 and covered sports for Telemundo Kansas City. He had traveled to the New Orleans area to cover the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl game against the Philadelphia Eagles. He was found dead in his hotel room in Kenner, Louisiana.
The Jefferson Parish coroner's office said Manzano died from positional asphyxiation. That means he could not breathe because of the position of his body. An autopsy found Xanax and alcohol in his system.
Prosecutors said Colbert, White and co-defendant Christian Anderson targeted tourists in New Orleans' French Quarter as part of a criminal enterprise dating back to 2012. The group, prosecutors alleged, lured victims with the promise of sex before drugging and robbing them. Anderson testified against Colbert and White at trial.
The verdicts drew distinctions between the defendants on homicide liability. White was found not guilty of manslaughter in connection with Manzano's death. KATU Colbert's negligent homicide conviction carries a maximum sentence of 10 years. AP Her consecutive 10-year term on that count sits at that ceiling.
The case moved through several stages before trial. White was arrested in Florida in March on robbery and fraud charges related to Manzano's death and was then extradited to Louisiana. Extradition means transfer in custody to face charges in another state. AP Colbert had been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death. AP Her arrest record includes allegations of drugging men and theft. She was held without bond after a court appearance in the case. That means she remained in jail while awaiting trial. AP
The broader context here is the use of an enterprise charge to bind a single high-profile death to a much longer alleged pattern. Racketeering lets prosecutors present years of French Quarter thefts as one course of conduct rather than litigating Manzano's death in isolation. That structure also explains the central role of Anderson. Cooperation from an alleged participant can supply the insider account of method and division of roles that toxicology and hotel records alone cannot provide. The split homicide findings will merit close reading. Lengthy racketeering sentences landed even as the jury declined to hold White liable for manslaughter, while Colbert faces the maximum term for negligent homicide alongside her racketeering term.
