Mayor Latoya Cantrell was charged with accusations of using $70,000 in city funds to “maximise” private time with his bodyguard on a trip to California vineyards in Scotland in the United Arab Emirates.
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The mayor of New Orleans has been charged with charges stemming from a scheme that allegedly uses more than $70,000 in urban funds to maintain a secret relationship with his bodyguard, a new court filing shows.
Mayor Latoya Cantrell, first elected in 2017, “maximizing” his “maximizing” time with Jeffrey Paul Bappy II, using his office with Jeffrey Paul Bappy II, according to the indictment filed Friday, August 15th.
The two went together on 14 trips deemed a business in New Orleans, the indictment says. Destinations include the United Arab Emirates, San Francisco and Washington, DC. The trip to Scotland was “where it all began,” according to court filings.
Federal charges against Cantrell in the Eastern District of Louisiana include conspiracy, wire fraud, false statements and obstruction of justice, court filings show.
A Cantrell Office representative has instructed USA Today to send a request for comment via email. Her office did not reply.
Vappie’s attorney Harry Rosenberg told USA Today that his client could not comment on the charges, including a former bodyguard.
Vappie was first charged with wire fraud in July 2024 in connection with false time claims, including those spent in Cantrell’s French Quarter apartment. He pleaded not guilty, according to a report by the Associated Press.
Prosecutors said the pair have potentially faced decades in prison if convicted.
