Featured Image Credit: FBI
Topics: Crime, Los Angeles, True crime, Money, California, Michigan
Niamh Shackleton
Topics: Crime, Los Angeles, True crime, Money, California, Michigan
A woman is reportedly on the run after scamming banks and financial institutions out of an eye-watering $30 million.
Mary Carole McDonnell has been named by the FBI as a person of interest in a fraud case in Los Angeles and Orange Counties, California.
The 73-year-old's alleged crimes date back to the start of 2017 and continued until May 2018.
A new press release states: "McDonnell is alleged to have knowingly, and with the intent to defraud, devised and participated in a scheme to obtain money, funds, assets, and property owned by Banc of California.
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"Through this scheme, McDonnell allegedly and fraudulently obtained a total of approximately $14.7 million from the bank to which she knew she was not entitled and has not paid back."
The FBI continued: "It is alleged that McDonnell also defrauded additional financial institutions in a similar fashion, with an estimated loss of over $15 million."
Apparently McDonnell said that she was the heir to the McDonnell Aircraft family and that she had a whopping $80 million in a secret trust, which is how she got the banks to loan her the vast amounts of cash.
A federal arrest warrant was issued for the Michigan native in December 2018 after she was charged with bank fraud and aggravated identity theft.
But seven years later, she's yet to be apprehended, prompting the FBI to share a fresh appeal for information on her whereabouts.
According to the bureau, McDonnell is currently living in Dubai in the UAE. Anyone with information on her whereabouts have been urged to contact their local FBI office or the nearest American Embassy or Consulate.
KTLA reports that McDonnell once worked for Bellum Entertainment LLC, a Burbank-based production company behind TV shows including It Takes a Killer and I Married a Murderer.
At the time of her tenure, the business was accused of failing to pay wages to dozens of former workers.
In 2017, Bellum Entertainment was hit with two breach-of-contract suits by two separate companies that were filed in Los Angeles Superior Court.
Attornies for the companies said Bellum breached each of its contracts to the tune of around $3 million, Deadline reported.
McDonnell, who was still CEO at the time, is believed to have told employees that the company had been the victim of 'significant bank fraud'.
But her nephew, Peter McDonnell, who had worked as Bellum's vice president for 10 years, said he was 'unaware of any bank fraud'.