FBI Seeks Mary Carole McDonnell in Multimillion-Dollar Bank Fraud Case
Former Bellum Entertainment CEO Wanted for Bank Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft
Mary Carole McDonnell is wanted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on federal charges of bank fraud and aggravated identity theft stemming from a multimillion-dollar financial scheme in Los Angeles and Orange Counties, California. A federal arrest warrant was issued for McDonnell on December 12, 2018, in the United States District Court for the Central District of California in Santa Ana. She remains wanted, and the FBI currently believes she is in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (FBI)
The FBI says McDonnell has ties to Los Angeles, California; Montgomery, Alabama; and Dubai. She previously served as the Chief Executive Officer of Bellum Entertainment LLC, a California television production company. Her case centers on representations she made concerning enormous personal wealth, a supposed family fortune and a secret trust that she claimed would eventually provide her with access to tens of millions of dollars. (FBI)
The $80 Million Secret Trust
According to the FBI, McDonnell falsely claimed to be an heir to the McDonnell Aircraft family and claimed that she had an $80 million secret trust to which she would have access. That representation became a central part of the financial dealings that ultimately led to the federal case against her. (FBI)
The FBI states that beginning in approximately July 2017 and continuing through May 2018, McDonnell devised and participated in a scheme to obtain money, funds, assets and property belonging to Banc of California. Federal authorities say the scheme resulted in approximately $14.7 million being obtained from the bank—money the FBI says McDonnell was not entitled to and has not repaid. (FBI)
Banc of California was not the only financial institution connected to the case. The FBI states that McDonnell also used a similar method involving additional financial institutions, resulting in estimated losses exceeding another $15 million. Based on the figures published by the FBI, the losses attributed to the schemes total approximately $29.7 million. (FBI)
Court Records Detail the Banc of California Transaction
Federal court records provide considerably more detail about how McDonnell obtained financing from Banc of California.
In litigation later brought by Banc of California against Federal Insurance Company, the court described how attorney Barry Rothman introduced McDonnell to a Banc of California vice president while McDonnell was seeking a multimillion-dollar loan. (FindLaw)
According to the court record, the bank's investigation uncovered significant information about McDonnell's financial history. The record states that she had a credit score of 545, that information concerning check fraud in 2016 had been identified, and that a judgment of approximately $2.3 million had been entered against her in 2017. The court also referenced an injunction involving Bellum Entertainment related to the nonpayment of a short-term loan. (FindLaw)
Despite those circumstances, McDonnell and Rothman represented that McDonnell was heir to a large fortune and that assets belonging to her trust were temporarily frozen, according to the federal court's account. (FindLaw)
A complaint filed by Banc of California in subsequent insurance litigation provides additional details about the representations surrounding the financing. According to that filing, McDonnell applied for what was described as a "bridge" loan and represented that she was an heir to the founder of the McDonnell Douglas Corporation and the beneficiary of a large trust that would soon begin making substantial distributions to her. (Courthouse News)
The filing states that McDonnell signed a promissory note and provided the bank with a pledge agreement and a signed and notarized security agreement. The purported security agreement represented that $28 million in cash was on deposit for McDonnell. (Courthouse News)
These representations about McDonnell's supposed wealth and trust assets became central to the disputes that followed.
Another Multimillion-Dollar Financial Case
McDonnell's financial history also appears in a separate federal civil case in Ohio.
In Kuhlman v. McDonnell, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio documented a separate $2.5 million loan made to McDonnell in January 2016. According to the court, Theodore and Carrie Kuhlman provided McDonnell with the money under a promissory note that required repayment of the $2.5 million principal plus $750,000 in interest by September 2016. (GovInfo)
The loan was represented as being secured by assets of the Mary Carole McDonnell Trust, which included Bellum Entertainment. The trust was represented as being worth hundreds of millions of dollars. (GovInfo)
As the repayment deadline approached, McDonnell requested additional time. The deadline was extended until September 2017 in exchange for another $750,000 interest payment. (GovInfo)
The court found that McDonnell never paid the full amount owed.
Records show that she made a $250,000 payment in February 2018 followed by two payments of $15,000 each in early 2019, bringing the total amount paid to $280,000. (GovInfo)
The Kuhlmans eventually filed a federal lawsuit against McDonnell and Bellum Entertainment. In February 2022, the court granted a default judgment against McDonnell for $4,465,255.38. (CaseMine)
That civil judgment is separate from the federal criminal case for which McDonnell is currently wanted, but the case provides additional court-documented information about McDonnell's use of representations concerning substantial family trust assets.
From Television Executive to FBI Fugitive
The FBI identifies McDonnell's occupation as Chief Executive Officer of Bellum Entertainment LLC. (FBI)
Her background in television adds an unusual dimension to the case. Bellum Entertainment operated in television production and became associated with programming about crime and criminal investigations. Years later, its former CEO became the subject of a federal criminal case herself.
By 2017, court records show that Bellum Entertainment and McDonnell were already facing substantial financial problems. The Banc of California litigation references a court injunction against Bellum Entertainment related to nonpayment of a short-term loan as well as a multimillion-dollar judgment against McDonnell. (FindLaw)
McDonnell's financial representations, particularly those involving her supposed family fortune and trust assets, would subsequently become a central issue in both civil litigation and the federal criminal investigation.
Federal Arrest Warrant Issued
On December 12, 2018, a federal arrest warrant was issued for Mary Carole McDonnell in the United States District Court for the Central District of California in Santa Ana.
She was charged with bank fraud and aggravated identity theft. (FBI)
McDonnell has remained wanted since the warrant was issued.
The FBI currently lists her in its white-collar crime wanted records and identifies the Los Angeles Field Office as the FBI office handling the case. (FBI)
The criminal charges remain pending while McDonnell remains a fugitive. A criminal charge is not itself a conviction; guilt on those charges must be determined through the federal court process.
Authorities Believe McDonnell Is in Dubai
The search for McDonnell extends beyond the United States.
The FBI states that McDonnell has ties to Dubai and believes she is currently located there. She also has established ties to Los Angeles and Montgomery, Alabama. (FBI)
Her suspected presence overseas has turned a Southern California financial case into an international fugitive investigation.
The FBI continues to seek information that could establish McDonnell's current whereabouts.
FBI Description of Mary Carole McDonnell
According to the FBI, Mary Carole McDonnell was born on December 28, 1951, in Michigan and is an American citizen.
She is described as 5 feet 7 inches tall and approximately 145 pounds, with blonde hair and blue eyes. The FBI states that she has a scar on her right knee. (FBI)
The FBI lists several aliases associated with McDonnell:
Mary Carole Carroll
Mary Carol McDonnell
Mary Carroll McDonnell
Mary C. Carroll
Mary Carroll McDonald
Her FBI National Crime Information Center number is W975574533. (FBI)
Nearly $30 Million at the Center of the Investigation
The scale of the financial losses makes McDonnell's case significant among current FBI white-collar fugitive cases.
The FBI attributes approximately $14.7 million in losses to Banc of California and says similar conduct involving additional financial institutions resulted in estimated losses exceeding $15 million. (FBI)
Together, those figures amount to approximately $29.7 million.
The FBI's case centers on McDonnell's representations about wealth that authorities say did not exist as she described it. The supposed connection to the McDonnell Aircraft family and the claimed $80 million secret trust were key elements of the financial picture she presented. (FBI)
Federal court records surrounding the Banc of California transaction further document representations involving large trust assets and a purported security agreement indicating that $28 million in cash was held for McDonnell. (Courthouse News)
Separate federal litigation in Ohio documented another multimillion-dollar transaction in which a McDonnell trust was represented as being worth hundreds of millions of dollars. That case ultimately resulted in a multimillion-dollar civil judgment against her. (GovInfo)
FBI Continues Search for McDonnell
Mary Carole McDonnell remains wanted by the FBI for bank fraud and aggravated identity theft.
Her federal arrest warrant has been outstanding since December 12, 2018, and authorities continue to believe she is in Dubai. (FBI)
Anyone with information concerning McDonnell's whereabouts should contact their local FBI office or the nearest American Embassy or Consulate. Members of the public should provide information directly to law enforcement rather than attempting to confront or apprehend a wanted person.
Sources: Federal Bureau of Investigation and United States federal court records.
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