Danette Colbert, 48, remains in jail accused of stealing Telemundo reporter Adan Manzano’s cellphone and credit cards.
KENNER, La. — Kenner Police Chief Keith Conley said a Slidell woman arrested in connection with the death of a Kansas City reporter is now suspected in a previous incident in the French Quarter.
Telemundo correspondent Adan Manzano was found unresponsive last Wednesday in his Kenner hotel room. He was in the New Orleans area covering the Super Bowl.
Danette Colbert, 48, remains in the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center, accused of stealing Manzano’s cellphone and credit cards.
“We’ve gotten information about similar acts that are coincidental in nature, and we’re trying to determine if they are connected to Danette Colbert in any form or fashion,” Conley said. “One of them was a fatality case that is of particular interest.”
Conley referenced an unsolved death from Dec. 15 at a hotel in the 300 block of Dauphine Street.
“Now I’m concerned when you might have one or two fatalities involving this kind of conduct,” Conley said. “I think this is one we have to take a stand on.”
Surveillance cameras at the Kenner Comfort Inn captured Colbert entering Manzano’s room before leaving alone, police said.
Investigators told WWL Louisiana that surveillance footage also showed Colbert and Manzano together on Bourbon Street just hours before his death.
Bryan Lagarde, who runs the Project NOLA crime camera program, said facial and clothing recognition software was used to track Colbert that night.
“Regrettably, they met,” Lagarde said.
Footage also showed Colbert was a regular presence on Bourbon Street, Lagarde said.
“We would see her engaging in similar activities in the French Quarter, late at night, walking Bourbon Street and meeting people,” he said.
Police said Colbert has a lengthy criminal history, including at least two prior incidents in which she allegedly drugged victims and stole their credit cards.
Conley has asked Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill and state police to assist in the investigation.
“I’m working hard, in coordination with NOPD, state police, and the attorney general’s office, to ensure that if she is responsible for one of these deaths, she never sees the light of day again,” Conley said.
Murrill released a statement on the investigation.
“We will be doing everything we can to ensure justice is served,” she said. “It’s an active investigation, so we can’t speak further but will provide updates as often as we can.”
Colbert is being held without bail. She faces multiple charges, including bank fraud, computer fraud, and illegal transmission of monetary funds.
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