Global News Edmonton has reported:

The FBI is offering a reward of up to $150,000 for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of Mary Carole McDonnell, a 75-year-old woman accused of defrauding banks and other financial institutions of nearly $30 million. McDonnell was added Wednesday to the bureau’s newly formed Most Wanted Fraudsters List. The alleged year-long scheme took place in Los Angeles County and Orange County, California, from approximately July 2017 to May 2018.

Investigators allege McDonnell posed as an heiress to the McDonnell Aircraft family and claimed she could access an $80-million secret trust. The FBI said she allegedly defrauded Banc of California of $14.7 million, money and assets she allegedly knew she was not entitled to and has not repaid. Other financial institutions reportedly suffered estimated losses of more than $15 million.

“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,” the FBI said. The allegations also include aggravated identity theft, alongside bank fraud charges.

A federal arrest warrant was issued in December 2018 in the United States District Court for the Central District of California in Santa Ana, California. McDonnell is believed to be in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. FBI officials said she has ties to Los Angeles, California, Montgomery, Alabama, and Dubai.

“Most Wanted Fraudster Mary McDonnell is wanted for defrauding financial institutions out of millions and is known to have falsified her inheritance and background,” said Patrick Grandy, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “It’s just a matter of time before McDonnell is caught as we work with our international partners to locate her. A generous reward is being offered in exchange for information leading to her apprehension and conviction, and a tip from the public might break the case,” Grandy added.

McDonnell’s last known occupation was CEO and founder of Bellum Entertainment, a now-defunct television production and distribution company based in Burbank. She is described as five feet, seven inches tall, with blonde hair and blue eyes. Officials said she also uses the aliases Mary Carole Carroll, Mary Carol McDonnell, Mary Carroll McDonnell, Mary C. Carroll and Mary Carroll McDonald.

The FBI is asking anyone with information about McDonnell to contact a local FBI office or the nearest American embassy, or to submit an anonymous tip online. The reward applies to information leading to both her arrest and conviction.