Ex-G League player being held on murder charge

A former member of the Portland Trail Blazers has been charged with murder following the discovery of the remains of a missing woman near Las Vegas, police said Sunday.

Chance Comanche was arrested Friday on an unspecified felony charge by the FBI in Sacramento County, Calif., near where he played for the Stockton Kings of the G League. The team — an affiliate of the Sacramento Kings — released him following his arrest.

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department issued a news release Sunday afternoon announcing the charges against Comanche, 27, in the death of 23-year-old Marayna Rodgers, whose remains were found in Henderson, Nev.

She last was seen in the Las Vegas area on Dec. 6; the Stockton Kings played the G League Ignite in Henderson the night before. Rodgers, a medical assistant, was visiting the area from Washington state with friends.

Also charged with murder was Sakari Harnden, 19, identified by police as a friend of Rodgers and the girlfriend of Comanche. She initially was taken into custody and booked into a Las Vegas jail on Wednesday and charged with kidnapping.

Rodgers was reported missing on Dec. 7.

Based on information police obtained following the arrests, detectives were able to recover the remains subsequently identified as Rodgers by the Clark County coroner, police said. The news release said detectives were able to determine that Harnden and Comanche "were responsible for the murder of Rodgers."

Comanche's extradition to Nevada is pending.

Comanche played two seasons of college basketball at Arizona, entered the 2017 NBA Draft and was undrafted. He has appeared in one NBA game, making his debut with the Trail Blazers on April 9, 2023. He scored seven points in 21 minutes.

Comanche, a 6-foot-10 center, played in 13 games for Stockton this season, averaging 14.0 points and 7.0 rebounds.

—Field Level Media