WWE Tough Enough alumnus Daniel Rodimer has turned himself in after a warrant was issued for his arrest over a murder charge in Las Vegas, NV.
KLAS is reporting that Rodimer turned himself in at the Clark County Detention Center around 6:00 PM local time on Wednesday.
The report states that detectives believe Rodimer attacked Christopher Tapp, on October 29th after Tapp allegedly offered Rodimer’s stepdaughter cocaine during a party at a Las Vegas hotel room. While Tapp’s death was initially believed to be an “apparent overdose” and “fall,” his autopsy showed blunt force trauma to the head. He also had cocaine in his system. Tapp later died at Sunrise Hospital in Las Vegas, NV on November 5th.
It was noted that the detectives in charge of the case learned during their investigation that Rodimer and Tapp were involved in a physical altercation, which occurred after the alleged cocaine offer to Rodimer’s stepdaughter. One witness said Rodimer told Tapp, “If you ever talk to my daughter again, I’ll [expletive] kill you.” Immediately after, the witness heard “two loud banging noises.”
Another witness said they saw Rodimer knock Tapp to the ground and that Tapp’s head hit a small table. At that point, Rodimer punched Tapp “throughout his head and body.” A third witness came forward to say Tapp slipped and fell, hitting his head on a coffee table. Several other witnesses told police that many people at the party used cocaine on the night of the incident.
There are also texts between Rodimer and his wife Sarah, who texted, “I watched you nearly murder somebody and I had to take your [expletive] hands off from his neck as he laid there and you ran away and I spent the next two hours trying to take care of him. Nobody should have to watch their husband murder somebody…. I watched you murder somebody like let that sink in your psychopath.”
Tapp and Rodimer reportedly knew each other through the classic car and racing circuit.
It’s worth noting that Tapp previously served two decades in prison for a crime he did not commit. Tapp was convicted in the 1996 rape and murder of an 18-year-old girl despite being exonerated by DNA evidence. At the time, Tapp was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum 30 year sentence. The conviction was vacated in July of 2019.
Rodimer resurfaced in 2021 as a Republican candidate from Nevada who was endorsed by Donald Trump. He ran for an open congressional seat in Texas against 22 other candidates. Rodimer, who is from New Jersey, tried to portray himself as a Texan and was mocked for “cosplaying.” He also ran for office in Nevada in 2020. He lost big in both of his election races.
UPDATE: Rodimer has been released from jail after posting a $200,000 bond at 7:43 PM PST. He is due for a court hearing on April 10th at 7:30 AM.
