GREELEY, Colo.—An arrest warrant has been issued for a suspect in the slaying of an athletic trainer for the Harlem Globetrotters.
Draton Mares, 23, of Northglenn, is wanted on charges of first-degree murder and aggravated motor vehicle theft in the shooting death of Thomas Bashline, the Greeley Tribune reported ( ). He was in custody Wednesday in Boulder County on an unrelated offense.
Bashline’s girlfriend found Bashline dead in the couple’s home in Frederick, about 25 miles north of Denver, on Nov. 4. Bashline, 42, was a trainer for Brighton High School for 10 years before working for the Globetrotters.
In a written statement, the Weld County sheriff’s office said investigators linked Mares to the slaying after discovering personal items in Bashline’s vehicle, which was stolen and found in Boulder on Nov. 4.
Investigators said Bashline knew Mares and had picked him up earlier that day in Longmont before heading to his home.
According to an arrest warrant affidavit released Wednesday, Mares claimed he had an occasional sexual relationship with Bashline. The affidavit said Mares told investigators that at Bashline’s home, Mares became angry after Bashline was verbally abusive and disrespectful to him.
Mares allegedly said he had Bashline lie on the bed for a back rub, then blindfolded him and shot him in the back of the head, according to the affidavit.
Investigators said they have recovered a .45-caliber semiautomatic handgun they believe was used in the slaying.
It wasn’t immediately known if Mares had a lawyer.
