A US-born woman who pretended to be an Irish heiress and scammed a television producer out of nearly $100,000 has been arrested again, this time facing fraud charges in the UK. Marianne “Mair” Smyth is awaiting extradition to Belfast, Northern Ireland, on allegations she defrauded multiple people of hundreds of thousands of dollars between 2002 and 2009.
Authorities arrested Smyth on 23 February at a rental home in Bingham, Maine, where she was staying after early release from a prison sentence for defrauding podcaster Johnathan Walton. Walton’s podcast, Queen of the Con: The Irish Heiress, detailed his experience with Smyth and her various ruses, including impersonating actress Jennifer Aniston.
According to court records, Belfast police allege Smyth worked at mortgage companies in the UK and convinced five people she met through work to give her a total of about £135,570 ($172,000) for investment in a non-existent high-interest bank account, which she kept for herself. Police planned to arrest her in 2009, but she fled after being tipped off, reportedly arranging for the euthanasia of over a dozen dogs to facilitate her escape.
Smyth later resurfaced in Los Angeles, where she befriended Walton while posing as a glamorous Irish heiress locked in a legal battle over a $30m inheritance. Walton gave her nearly $100,000 between 2013 and 2017, believing it would help secure her inheritance. He later discovered the inheritance was fictitious and that she had used some of his money to deal with a guilty plea for stealing from a travel agency.
Walton’s investigation revealed Smyth had also impersonated a psychologist, a court-appointed child custody investigator, a psychic, a cancer patient, a witch, and an NHL hockey coach to con people. She also blackmailed married men with whom she had extramarital affairs. Walton’s blog about her drew nearly 50 other victims across the US, claiming she conned them out of about $1m in total.
Walton’s information led Northern Irish authorities to seek her extradition. In Los Angeles, Smyth was arrested in April 2018, convicted of grand theft by false pretense, and sentenced to five years in prison. She was released in December 2020, less than two years later, due to early releases during the Covid-19 pandemic. Walton’s podcast, distributed by iHeart and AYR Media in early 2021, attracted a significant audience.
