The former bodyguard for the Mayor of New Orleans was indicted by a federal grand jury Friday.
Jeffrey Paul Vappie II, a former New Orleans Police Officer, was indicted on seven counts of wire fraud and one count of making false statements to federal investigators. Federal prosecutors also are seeking a forfeiture.
Vappie's accused of submitting false timecards to the NOPD so that he could be paid for the time he spent with Mayor LaToya Cantrell while they were having a romantic relationship, and of lying about all of it to the FBI. The indictment also asks that any funds Vappie obtained through the false timecards be forefeited to the government.
If you want to read the indictment for yourself, scroll down.
The indictment is related to the time that Vappie was assigned to the Executive Protection Unit of the NOPD; part of the duties of that unit was to provide security and risk mitigation for select high-ranking New Orleans officials.
The false timecards he submitted were dated August 2, 2022 to April 7, 2024, the indictment alleges. The indictment alleges that the EPU was not supposed to provide security for the Mayor when she was at home - but Vappie submitted timecards for 25 days he was with the mayor in her residence.
"It was part of (the alleged scheme) that beginning not later than about November 2021, Vappie and Public Official 1 carried on a personal, romantic relationship, which Vappie attempted to disguise by making his interactions with Public Official 1 appear to relate to Vappie's duties and responsibilities as a member of EPU assigned to provide personal protection to Public Official 1," the indictment states.
Investigators investigated Vappie's online searches and learned that he searched for:
- Information about an affair the former mayor of Nashville had with a member of her security detail and the criminal prosecution of them both. You can read CNN's story about that case here.
- How secure "whatsapp" communications are.
- Multiple searches for the home address of a reporter who broadcast stories about his relationship with the mayor.
- The name of Whitney Houston's character in the film "The Bodyguard."
The false statements allegedly were made by Vappie about his relationship with Cantrell, who is referred to as "Public Official 1" in the indictment.
"Vappie and Public Official 1 exchanged numerous voice messages, including on September 25, 2022, September 29, 2022, and October 3, 2022 in which Vappie and Public Official 1 each utilized romantic terms of endearment and expressed their love, attraction and affection for the other," the indictment alleges.
But, when an FBI agent questioned him in July 2023, Vappie denied that he had ever had a physical or romantic relationship with Cantrell, denied ever kissing her and denied that he told her that he loved her, the indictment alleges.
"...these statements and representations were false because, as the defendant, Jeffrey Paul Vappie II then and there knew, since at least November 2021, Vappie had been in a romantic relationship and a physical relationship with Public Official 1, Vappie had kissed Public Official 1 and Vappie had told Public Official 1 that Vappie loved Public Official 1," the indictment alleges.
During his time as Cantrell's bodyguard, the indictment alleges, Vappie accompanied her on at least 14 out-of-state trips, including Los Angeles, California, San Francisco, California and Washington DC, as well as international locations including Scotland and the United Arab Emirates.
The city spent more than $47,000 in costs related to his trips, the indictment alleges.
The indictment also alleges that Vappie contacted the interim police superintendent and asked them to "make it right" when they reviewed the investigation of his time with the mayor. After that person upheld the findings of the IA investigation, Vappie was in the meeting when Cantrell announced the interim person wouldn't be made permanent. After that meeting, the indictment alleges, Vappie called that person to invite them to a daiquiri shop to discuss the "recent demotion and mitigate the interim superintendent's disappointment," the indictment alleges.
Vappie left the NOPD in June 2024, the indictment states.
Back in 2022, WVUE reported that cameras had captured Vappie spending much of his workday in the Pontalba apartment with Cantrell. You can see their reporting on this issue here. The following year, WVUE reported that Vappie's spouse had filed divorce papers against him in which she alleged he was having an inappropriate relationship with a woman identified as "Mrs. L.C." To read that story, click here.
Cantrell's husband died of a heart attack in August 2023.
Here's the indictment:
