A former NBA G League basketball player charged in the disappearance and murder of a 23-year-old woman has reportedly confessed to conspiring with his ex-girlfriend lured the woman and strangled her, according to a police warrant obtained by KCRA.
Chance Comanche, 27, allegedly admitted to Las Vegas police that he and his ex-girlfriend, 19-year-old Sakari Harnden, plotted to murder victim Marayna Rodgers in the early morning hours of Dec. 6. said the police.
Police suspected two possible motives for the murder, each stemming from disputes between Harnden and Rodgers, both of whom were sex workers and had interacted with each other in the past. One explanation offered by police refers to a feud over the theft of a Rolex watch, another says that Harnden apparently worked with police to arrest Rodgers' friend.
Comanche played for the Stockton Kings until he was fired following his arrest on Friday. He reportedly met up with Harnden, whom he used to date, shortly after a Kings game on the evening of December 5th. The couple had allegedly planned to lure Rodgers away from her friends by promising her money for sex as well as a chance to meet NBA players.
According to police, Rodgers was reported missing on December 7 by her boyfriend, who had driven her to Las Vegas for sex work. The friend told investigators that Rodgers was expected to make $4,000 from the date, but that she never returned to the Airbnb they shared and that location services on her phone were turned off.
Open image ModalChance Comanche (left) has allegedly confessed to conspiring to murder Maryana Rodgers (right).
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Harnden was initially taken into custody on Dec. 13 for theft and later charged with Rodgers' murder, according to court records reviewed by HuffPost. Comanche was arrested Dec. 14 in California on kidnapping charges and taken to the Sacramento County Jail, where Las Vegas police traveled to conduct his interview.
Comanche allegedly told officers that his conspiracy with Harnden began long before the night of Rodgers' death. Police say Comanche and Harnden communicated on the encrypted messaging app Telegram, where they tried to hire a friend to kill Rodgers for $3,000 – but the friend reportedly declined.
Comanche and Harnden couldn't find anyone to kill Rodgers for them and decided to go ahead themselves, police said.
According to police, Comanche said he called Rodgers as a customer and offered $1,000. Rodgers arranged with Harnden to meet Comanche at a prearranged location in Las Vegas before driving to a dead-end street to have sex, police said.
Comanche allegedly told police that Harnden tied Rodgers' hands together and acted as if it was part of the “kinky sex” they had agreed to.
According to police, Harnden then choked Rodgers with her hands while Comanche grabbed an HDMI cable to further strangle the victim.
Comanche allegedly told police he stopped when he heard Rodgers gasping for air, but Harnden choked Rodgers until she became unresponsive.
Comanche said he and Harnden then drove with Rodgers' body in the passenger seat until they found a ditch where they could hide her body, the warrant states.
The basketball player allegedly told police the location of the ditch where they found Rodgers' body.
According to criminal complaints obtained by HuffPost, Comanche and Harnden are charged with murder and conspiracy to commit murder.