NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Federal prosecutors are accusing a former New Orleans police officer of hiding a romantic relationship with Mayor LaToya Cantrell and filing false payroll records claiming he was on duty as one of her bodyguards during hours they spent together on trips abroad, at restaurants and at a city-owned French Quarter apartment.
Jeffrey Vappie was indicted Friday on charges of wire fraud and making false statements. He is tentatively set for his first court appearance next week. His lawyers declared his innocence in an emailed statement on Monday. Vappie announced his retirement from the New Orleans police department last month.
Cantrell has not been charged. She declined comment in a statement issued by City Hall. She is identified in the indictment only as Public Official 1 who was elected mayor in November 2017 and again four years later — coinciding with dates Cantrell was also elected.
Cantrell is the first woman to serve as New Orleans’ mayor.
At the heart of the indictment are seven wire fraud counts citing a series of payroll deposits into Vappie's account for time Vappie claimed to be working as a member of the department's “executive protection unit” when, prosecutors allege, he was off duty. There is also a single count of making false statements, alleging he lied to the FBI about his “romantic and physical” relationship with Cantrell. Such a relationship violated police department policy.
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