New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell is under investigation again – this time after she has been accused of having an affair with a police officer who accompanied her on a recent trip to Dubai – all at the taxpayer’s expense.
According to the NY Post and FOX 8, the FBI is probing Cantrell, who is said to have spent time with New Orleans Police Department Officer Jeffrey Vappie both on and off the clock in a private apartment called the Upper Pontalba – eventually causing the dissolution of his marriage.
Tt has also been alleged that prior to him being removed as her official security guard, she had taken him to a “climate action” gathering in Dubai last year.
Reports say her mayoral group paid for the $24,000 tab she racked up during the trip. But taxpayers paid up to $14,000 to fund Vappie’s flight, accommodations, and other expenses.
Since news broke of the affair, Vappie admitted having performed adultery with the mayor, according to court documents.
Meanwhile, the mayor has denied all allegations.
“Based on the false allegations that come my way, by the time I’ve finished this job, literally, (I’ll be) accused of sleeping with half of the city of New Orleans,” she said at a press conference earlier this month. “Both genders and all pronouns.”
She further denies that she engaged in rendezvous in the city-owned apartment, although video surveillance captured both parties entering and exiting the apartment together at numerous occasions.
In text messages obtained by NOLA.com, Cantrell says she feels she is being attacked because of her gender.
Vappie has since been removed from her security detail but remains a police officer for NOPD.
Both Cantrell and Vappie have been banned from using the Upper Pontalba residence due to revelations regarding their entries and exits captured on surveillance. The City Council clarified that the apartment was typically utilized for meetings with visiting dignitaries rather than for extended personal stays.
Cantrell, who holds the distinction of being New Orleans’ first female mayor in its 300-year history, was initially elected in 2017 and secured reelection in 2021.
