New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell was indicted on federal charges Friday, accused of engaging in a yearslong scheme with a former police officer on her security detail to defraud the city while concealing their “personal and intimate relationship.” The 18-count superseding indictment, unsealed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, makes Cantrell the first sitting mayor in the city’s 300-year history to face criminal charges.
The indictment charges Cantrell, 53, and former New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) Officer Jeffrey Vappie, 52, with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to obstruct justice. Cantrell also faces multiple counts of wire fraud, obstruction of justice, and making false declarations before a grand jury. Vappie, who was previously charged, faces additional counts and a charge of making a false statement to the FBI. Both have maintained their relationship was strictly professional.
According to prosecutors, the pair developed an intimate relationship around October 2021 and exploited their official positions for personal benefit. The scheme allegedly involved Vappie claiming to be on duty and receiving pay while engaged in personal activities, often with the mayor. This cost the City of New Orleans over $70,000 for Vappie’s travel expenses alone on at least 14 domestic and international trips, including visits to Scotland, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C., according to the Department of Justice.
“Public corruption has crippled us for years and years,” Acting U.S. Attorney Michael M. Simpson said at a press conference, calling the case “extremely significant.” He emphasized that the indictment does not criminalize a relationship but rather alleges a “yearslong, continuing fraud scheme that used public money for personal ends.”
The indictment details extensive efforts to conceal the relationship, including the exchange of over 15,000 messages on the encrypted platform WhatsApp within an eight-month period. In one message, Cantrell allegedly sent Vappie a photo of a ring on her finger with the caption, “Hey did you tell [them] you put a ring on it?” In another, she reportedly wrote, “The times when we are truly alone (traveling) is what spoils me the most.”
Prosecutors allege that after media reports began to surface in late 2022, Cantrell and Vappie took steps to obstruct the investigation. Cantrell is accused of deleting thousands of messages, activating a “disappearing messages” feature, and then lying under oath to a federal grand jury by claiming she had activated the feature in 2021. The indictment also states she withheld more than 50 responsive photos from her personal devices that were requested via subpoena.
Cantrell, a Democrat first elected in 2017 and re-elected in 2021, is the first woman to serve as mayor of New Orleans. Her second term has been marked by controversy, including a failed recall effort in 2022 and disputes with the City Council over her use of a city-owned apartment in the French Quarter, which the indictment alleges the pair treated as a “personal, shared residence.”
If convicted, Cantrell and Vappie face severe penalties. The charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to obstruct justice each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Other charges carry sentences of up to five years. Both could also face fines of up to $250,000 per count.
The news sent shockwaves through the city’s political landscape. In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for City Council President JP Morrell said, “This is a sad day for the people of New Orleans.” City Councilman Joe Giarrusso urged the public to let the legal process unfold, writing on X, “Everyone is presumed innocent under the law. Mayor Cantrell deserves that presumption.”
The mayor’s office stated that her attorney was reviewing the indictment and would not comment further at this time. Cantrell is in her final term and is set to leave office in January 2026.
