FBI Adds Mary McDonnell, 75, to New Most Wanted Fraudsters List Over Alleged $14.7 Million Bank Fraud in Los Angeles and Orange Counties; Reward Up to $150,000
LOS ANGELES — The FBI's Los Angeles Field Office announced on October 14 that Mary Carole McDonnell, 75, has been added to the FBI's newly formed Most Wanted Fraudsters list, with a reward of up to $150,000 offered for information leading to her arrest and conviction. Patrick Grandy, the assistant director in charge of the Los Angeles Field Office, announced the addition; McDonnell is one of two fugitives added to the list this round, with the FBI's San Antonio office also announcing a list member this week.
McDonnell is wanted for bank fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to the FBI, from July 2017 to May 2018 she allegedly devised and participated in a scheme in Los Angeles and Orange counties, California, fraudulently obtaining approximately $14.7 million from Banc of California, funds she knew she was not entitled to and has not repaid. She is also alleged to have defrauded additional financial institutions in a similar fashion, with estimated losses of more than $15 million. The FBI says she falsely claimed to be an heiress to the McDonnell aircraft family, with access to an $80 million secret trust. On December 12, 2018, after she was charged with bank fraud and aggravated identity theft, a federal arrest warrant was issued for her in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California in Santa Ana. The FBI believes she is currently in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The charges are allegations and the case has not been tried.
The Most Wanted Fraudsters list was created and launched in June 2026 to focus exclusively on fugitives wanted for major fraud, and is separate from the FBI's traditional Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list; a reward of up to $150,000 is offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of a member of the list. Grandy said McDonnell is wanted for defrauding financial institutions out of millions and is known to have falsified her inheritance and background, and that the FBI is working with international partners to locate her.
McDonnell is a former chief executive of Bellum Entertainment, a Burbank-based television production company. The FBI describes her as 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighing approximately 145 pounds, with blonde hair and blue eyes, noting she may have changed her appearance over the years. Her aliases include Mary Carole Carroll, Mary Carol McDonnell, Mary Carroll McDonnell, Mary C. Carroll and Mary Carroll McDonald. She has ties to Los Angeles, California; Montgomery, Alabama; and Dubai.
Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to contact a local FBI office or the nearest American embassy or consulate, call the FBI's toll-free tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI, or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov. The case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California.
(Source: FBI Los Angeles Field Office)
Source: FBI Los Angeles Field Office
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