New Orleans mayor LaToya Cantrell was indicted Friday by a Grand Jury.
Former New Orleans Police Department officer Jeffrey Vappie is facing new allegations in Mayor Cantrell’s indictment.
The indictment alleges that in October 2021, Cantrell and Vappie developed a personal relationship and hid that relationship to maximize their time together.
Cantrell and Vappie are accused of exploiting their public positions to develop and implement a scheme to defraud the City of New Orleans.
They are accused of engaging in personal activities while Vappie was paid to be on her security detail.
Vappie often traveled with the mayor on trips paid for by the city. In total, Vappie’s trips cost the City of New Orleans more than $70,000, which is separate from Cantrell’s travel amounts, according to the indictment.
Cantrell and Vappie are also accused of using encrypted messages to hide their relationship through the app “What’s App.”
Both are accused of deleting photos and messages, making false statements about their relationship to federal law enforcement agents, and testifying falsely under oath.
In 2021, Vappie is accused of going on trips with Cantrell 14 times between 2021 and 2024.
Vappie is also accused of spending time alone with Cantrell in the Pontalba apartment that she stayed in. At the time, that apartment was city-owned.
When the grand jury investigation began in 2023, the indictment alleges both Cantrell and Vappie lied about their relationship, specifically about gifts they gave each other.
Vappie and Cantrell are also accused of exchanging more than 15,000 messages and pictures. Both are accused of deleting the messages they exchanged.
Cantrell is also accused of concealing documents and records in an effort to hide information from the grand jury.
The federal government is asking Cantrell and Vappie to forfeit any property related to the allegations against them and may seek a money judgement.
Vappie’s original indictment:
Vappie was indicted in July 2024 on seven counts of wire fraud and one count of making false statement.
New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell was implicated in the indictment as “Public Official One, mayor of the City of New Orleans.”
Vappie is accused of incurring more than $47,000 in costs connected to work trips while he traveled with Cantrell.
Those costs included meals, lodging, incidentals, and his salary.
According to the indictment, Vappie “knowingly submitted false timecards to NOPD in excessive payments.”
According to the indictment, Vappie and Cantrell began a romantic relationship in November 2021, a relationship the indictment said Vappie routinely denied having.
The indictment goes on to say that Vappie and Cantrell exchanged personal and romantic messages through photographs, text messages, voice notes, and Whats app encrypted messages.
Vappie is also accused of deleting the messages.
Also included in the indictment was a letter that the feds say Vappie wrote to the mayor in the summer of 2022 when he was part of her security detail.
“I’m in our space and feeling so in love with you,” Vappie wrote. “You got me baby and it feels so good! It’s crazy.”
The indictment claims that Vappie and Cantrell often ate meals and consumed alcohol together while he was on the clock.
Cantrell is also accused of appointing Vappie to the HANO Board, where he attended meetings while on the clock with NOPD, according to the indictment.
Vappie is also accused of conducting multiple searches online regarding a case where the former mayor of Nashville was accused of having a relationship with her bodyguard. He also is accused of searching “How secure is What’s app?”
The indictment goes on to say that Vappie tried to influence the former interim superintendent of the NOPD. The indictment does not name the interim superintendent, but Michelle Woodfork served in that role during the time Vappie worked with the mayor.
According to the indictment, Vappie is accused of also taking Woodfork to a daiquiri shop to discuss her demotion and “mitigate her disappointment” when she was not promoted.
It is important to note that Cantrell has not been indicted. However, sources tell WDSU that she has been under investigation for weeks for her alleged involvement in Vappie’s timecards.
As previously reported, Cantrell has received subpoenas dating back to a year ago. Her controversial use of the city-owned Pontalba apartment in the French Quarter was stripped by the city council.
The city of New Orleans issued the following statement regarding the indictment:
“Due to the ongoing nature of the investigation and out of respect for the integrity of the process, we will withhold any comments at this time.”
The New Orleans Police Department issued the following statement regarding the indictment against Vappie:
“Today, former Officer Jeffery Vappie was federally indicted. The NOPD fully cooperates with federal authorities and remains committed to upholding the highest standards of accountability and integrity. We are dedicated to maintaining the trust of our community through transparency and unwavering service. For further details, please refer to the appropriate federal agencies.”
The attorney representing Vappie’s wife in his divorce case said she has no comment.
The Metropolitan Crime Commission issued the following statement regarding the indictment against Vappie:
“Today, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Louisiana announced the federal indictment of former New Orleans Police Officer Jeffrey Vappie, II for seven counts of wire fraud and one count of making false statements to the FBI.
“The MCC’s assistance in this matter is acknowledged in the U.S. Attorney’s press release linked below.
“The MCC congratulates the FBI, the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of Louisiana, and the New Orleans Office of Inspector General for their work in obtaining this indictment.”
The New Orleans Police Justice Foundation issued the following statement regarding Jeffrey Vappie’s indictment:
“While the indictment of Officer Vappie does not come as a surprise in light of the ongoing investigation, it should be noted that there are 900 women and men at the NOPD who daily perform their duties with honesty and integrity.”
“This indictment should not overshadow the great work of our officers resulting in homicides, shootings, armed robberies and carjackings down at nearly double the national average.”
Earlier reports:
In September 2022, the Metropolitan Crime Commission issued a report shedding light on Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s use of the then-city-owned Pontalba apartment.
The MCC issued photos of her entering the apartment, attending gym classes in the French Quarter, and sitting on the balcony.
The report accused the mayor of living at the apartment full-time.
In November 2022, it came to light that one of the mayor’s officers on her security detail, Jeffrey Vappie, was accused of having a relationship with the mayor while also working on her detail.
An investigation was launched by the PIB into the allegations and Vappie was later taken off the mayor’s detail.
Vappie’s timecards would become the center of a PIB investigation. His timecards showed him routinely working more than 16-hour shifts while serving on the mayor’s security team.
Leaked audio from the PIB investigation showed Vappie being grilled on staying at the Pontalba apartments at the same time as the mayor.
A divorce filing from Vappie’s wife alleged that their possible relationship started in 2021.
The PIB’s investigation concluded that Vappie violated NOPD’s professionalism rules and duties, as well as timecard infractions.
A federal judge ruled that the PIB’s investigation violated the consent decree due to the way it was handled.
Some of those violations include:
Failing to accurately and completely record all allegations against Vappie
Failing to give meaningful consideration to circumstantial evidence available to the PIB investigators that could have suggested to a reasonable person that Vappie charged the NOPD for time not worked.
Failing to take reasonable measures to protect the confidentiality of its investigatory materials.
In response to this federal ruling, NOPD Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick has sent Judge Morgan a remedial plan. She is promising to improve PIB training and be more transparent with investigations with monitors during the process.
Following the PIB investigation and federal ruling, Vappie was reassigned to the mayor’s security team in January 2023.
Vappie continued on the mayor’s detail until April 25, when new photos surfaced of Mayor Cantrell and Vappie eating lunch in the French Quarter.
The MCC pressed for an investigation into whether or not the lunch was paid for by the city.
The pictures showed Cantrell and Vappie drinking wine during the lunch. The MCC also questioned whether or not Vappie was on the clock.
In June, it was confirmed that Vappie would be resigning from the NOPD effective June 29.
He had been with the department since 1997.
READ MORE:Jeffrey Vappie facing new allegations in mayor’s indictment
