Bulletin for May 12, 2026

Inspector General Ed Michel

Inspector General Michel’s role is to lead the OIG and ensure they fulfill their mission of identifying and mitigating fraud, waste, abuse and public corruption as they promote efficiency of city operations. He is a native New Orleanian and am proud and honored to serve all residents of New Orleans. Before he became Inspector General, he was the First Assistant Inspector General for Criminal Investigations and IT Program Manager for the OIG. Prior to that, he served in the United States Department of Justice (USDOJ) for 23 years.

During his tenure at the DOJ, he served in several leadership roles within the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). They included special assistant to the Assistant Director, unit chief of the Foreign Terrorist Tracking Task Force, Hurricane Katrina Fraud Task Force, Assistant Special Agent in Charge, FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force Commander, FBI Division’s Media Representative, Certified Police Instructor, and National Indian Gaming Working Group Coordinator. IG Michel attended Tulane University, where he received a Master of Professional Studies and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Paralegal Studies. He received the Integrity Award from the Office of Inspector General, U.S. Health and Human Services for his relentless pursuit of fraud, waste, and abuse. He has also received the Spirit of Courage award from the NAACP.

New Orleans voters approved a charter provision to establish an Office of Inspector General in 1996; ten years later, Councilmember Shelley Midura led a post-Katrina reform-minded City Council in creating the Office with the passage of City Code §2-1120. The establishing legislation clearly delineates the purpose of the Office of Inspector General: The purpose of this section is to establish a full-time program of oversight to prevent and detect fraud, waste and abuse, and to promote efficiency and effectiveness in city programs and operations.

In 2025, the OIG released seven reports, reviews, and public letters.They also opened fourteen investigations and initiated multiple projects that
concluded by early 2026. The City’s former Mayor and her bodyguard were charged with fraud and obstruction of justice in an 18-count federal indictment facilitated by an OIG investigation. The indictment demonstrates our office’s commitment to partnering with other agencies to hold public officials accountable for misuse of their offices. The federal charges also show the high quality of work performed by our staff. The OIG revealed fraudulent actions taken by the former director of the Orleans Parish Communication District (OPCD), who is
responsible for overseeing the City’s 911 system. Our investigation led to this official’s conviction on state charges and to changes to the OPCD board’s process for approving high-dollar contracts.