Former NBA G League player Chance Comanche admitted to fatally strangling a woman in Las Vegas earlier this month, according to a Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department affidavit.
Comanche was arrested on Friday after a first-degree kidnapping warrant was issued in Las Vegas. He was taken to jail in Sacramento County, California, and was later released from the Stockton Kings — the Sacramento Kings’ G League affiliate. Then on Sunday, Las Vegas police said that Comanche and his girlfriend, Sakari Harnden, were facing open murder charges for the death of Marayna Rodgers.
According to The Associated Press, Comanche described for Las Vegas detectives the alleged murder of Rodgers. He appeared in court on Tuesday and is set to be transferred to Nevada, where he will face murder and conspiracy to commit murder charges. Harnden is also facing charges related to Rodgers’ death, and is being held without bond in a Las Vegas jail.
“I cannot comment on the substance of any statements made to law enforcement,” Comanche’s attorney, Michael Goldstein, said Wednesday, via The Associated Press. “We made our initial appearance yesterday, and the allegations will be addressed in court … We’re going to let the courts deal with it. We’re going to deal with it in Nevada.”
Rodgers, a medical assistant from Washington state, was last seen on Dec. 6 during a trip to Las Vegas with friends, her family said. Her remains were later found in a desert area outside of the city.
According to the report, Comanche and Harnden worked together to choke Rodgers on Dec. 6 over an ongoing dispute Harnden and Rodgers were having over an expensive watch. Police said that both Harnden and Rodgers were sex workers, and that the “plot called for Comanche to pose as a sex customer” to lure Rodgers in before they allegedly killed her. Police said that Comanche and Harnden then left Rodgers’ body on the side of a road in Henderson, Nevada.
Comanche, 27, was in Las Vegas with the Stockton Kings for a game against the G League Ignite on Dec. 5 — the day before the alleged murder. The 6-foot-10 forward has appeared in one NBA game in his career, which he did last season with the Portland Trail Blazers. Comanche went undrafted out of Arizona in 2017, and has spent time in the G League, The Basketball League and playing in Turkey. He had averaged 14 points and seven rebounds in 13 games with the Stockton Kings this season.
Daniel Miller is a sports fanatic who lives and breathes athletics. His coverage spans from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis for sports enthusiasts.
