New Orleans Mayor and Bodyguard Face Corruption Charges Amid Allegations of Fraud

Tue Nov 11 2025 05:43:00 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

LaToya Cantrell and her bodyguard Jeffrey Vappie are implicated in using public funds to finance their personal relationship, leading to federal charges.

Newly filed charges against New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell and her bodyguard raise serious allegations of fraud and corruption, claiming the pair misused public resources to support their intimate relationship, including taking numerous trips together on the city's dime.

The Mayor of New Orleans, LaToya Cantrell, and her bodyguard, Jeffrey Vappie, are currently facing serious fraud and corruption charges linked to their alleged misuse of public funds to support a personal relationship. Federal prosecutors announced these charges on Friday, asserting that Cantrell and Vappie began a "personal, intimate relationship" in October 2021 while he served on her protection team.

The investigation details how the pair are accused of falsely claiming that Vappie was on duty during multiple domestic and international trips, which included 14 separate outings. They allegedly leveraged their secure messaging platform, WhatsApp, utilizing its auto-delete function to send thousands of messages with the aim to conceal their relationship and any unlawful activities from scrutiny.

Prosecutors assert that the duo treated a city-owned apartment as their shared residence, spending significant time there while Vappie was purportedly on duty. Additionally, the pair purportedly made personal trips, including a wine-tasting visit to a vineyard in California, amounting to expenses of around $70,000 in total, with Vappie claiming he was on duty to "maximize their time together."

While Cantrell has previously defended her decision to travel with Vappie due to safety concerns amid the ongoing Covid pandemic, federal officials contest this narrative, highlighting instances where she undertook journeys alone. U.S. Attorney Michael Simpson emphasized that while the relationship itself isn't criminal, it has resulted in an elaborate scheme that misappropriated public money for personal gain, exploiting their positions of power.

The situation escalated when a member of the public took photos of the couple dining, prompting Cantrell to file a police report and seek a restraining order against the person responsible. Further charges allege the pair intimidated their subordinates, lied to FBI agents, and committed perjury through false statements presented to a grand jury.

If convicted of any of the charges stipulated, the repercussions could lead to significant prison sentences and financial penalties of up to $250,000 (£184,000). As the first female mayor in New Orleans’ 300-year history, Cantrell has been in office since 2018 and is slated to step down in January.