New Orleans Mayor Latoya Cantrell indicted after corruption investigation

A federal grand jury indicted New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell on Friday. 

The indictment is the culmination of a long-running federal corruption investigation into Cantrell, the first female mayor in the city’s 300-year history. 

Latoya Cantrell indicted

What we know:

Cantrell’s lawyer, Eddie Castaing, confirmed to The Associated Press that an indictment was returned. He said her name was read aloud by a federal magistrate judge as a defendant. 

WWL reports that the federal investigation began in early 2024 and led to the indictment of a building inspector who allegedly conspired to bribe Cantrell with roughly $9,000 in gifts in 2019. 

Cantrell's former bodyguard, Jeffrey Vappie, was also indicted in 2024. He's accused of having an extramarital affair with Cantrell and using his relationship with her to defraud the New Orleans Police Department, WWL reports. 

READ MORE: Alabama city's entire police force on leave after grand jury finds 'rampant' corruption

Cantrell is finishing the last year of her second term and will leave office in January. The Democrat has clashed with City Council members during a turbulent second term and survived a recall effort in 2022.

What we don't know:

It’s still unclear what she’s been charged with, but federal authorities scheduled an afternoon news conference. 

The other side:

Cantrell and her remaining allies allege that she’s been unfairly targeted as Black woman and held to a different standard than male officials, her executive powers sabotaged. Earlier this year, Cantrell said she’s faced "very disrespectful, insulting, in some cases kind of unimaginable" treatment.

She hasn’t sent out a message on her official feed on X since July 15, when she touted that the city was experiencing historical declines in crime.

First mayor indicted while in office

The backstory:

Cantrell isn’t the first New Orleans mayor to be indicted on federal corruption charges. Former Mayor Ray Nagin was charged in 2013 and sentenced to 10 years in prison a year later. But according to WWL, she is the first mayor to be charged while still in office. 

Dig deeper:

As Cantrell heads into her final months in office, she’s alienated former confidants and supporters, and her civic profile has receded. Her early achievements were eclipsed by self-inflicted wounds and bitter feuds with a hostile city council, political observers say. The mayor’s role has weakened following voter-approved changes to the city’s charter meant to curb her authority.