WASHINGTON — President Trump on Wednesday announced Colin McDonald as his nominee for a new assistant general for fraud position that would — with Senate approval — grant him a broad license to find and prosecute misappropriation of federal resources.
McDonald isn’t a well-known national figure, but has built a reputation as a “fearless” prosecutor whose anti-fraud resume includes winning convictions in a significant Hawaii law enforcement corruption case.
“I am pleased to nominate Colin McDonald to serve as the first ever Assistant Attorney General for National FRAUD Enforcement, a new Division at the Department of Justice, which I created to catch and stop FRAUDSTERS that have been STEALING from the American People,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“My Administration has uncovered Fraud schemes in States like Minnesota and California, where these thieves have stolen Hundreds of Billions of Taxpayer Dollars,” the president continued. “Colin McDonald is a very Smart, Tough, and Highly Respected AMERICA FIRST Federal Prosecutor who has successfully delivered Justice in some of the most difficult and high stakes cases our Country has ever seen.
“Together, we will END THE FRAUD, and RESTORE INTEGRITY to our Federal Programs. Congratulations Colin — STOP THE SCAMS!”
In 2020, McDonald helped convict Honolulu Police Chief Louis Kealoha, his city-prosecutor wife Katherine Kealoha and two police officers in a complex scandal involving the powerful defendants framing an innocent man to cover up their own crimes.
The Kealohas were found guilty of false arrest and obstruction of justice for abusing their roles to arrest their own uncle — claiming he stole their mailbox — to discredit him and conceal their own theft of $148,000 from an elderly relative.
The four crooked Hawaii law enforcers were awarded between 42 and 156 months in prison — after they blew their loot on Elton John tickets, payments for Mercedes and Maserati luxury cars, a Disneyland vacation and a $23,976 brunch tab, according to prosecutors.
McDonald currently is associate deputy attorney general, reporting to Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. He worked between 2014 and 2025 as a federal prosecutor in Southern California and Hawaii.
Unlike most Justice Department officials, McDonald would report directly to Trump and Vice President JD Vance, both of whom have highlighted reports of widespread fraud in states like Minnesota and California, including scams impacting federally funded social services and pandemic relief.
Vance, who announced the new role at a White House press briefing this month, said: “Colin McDonald is widely regarded as a thorough and highly competent attorney. He has an exceptional prosecutorial track record, which we look forward to seeing him put to use in his new role as Assistant Attorney General.”
The precise bounds of McDonald’s “fraud” mission are unclear.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said McDonald “is doing outstanding work at the Department of Justice and will continue to be an invaluable asset on our team” and that his experience “makes him perfectly suited to help lead the charge on dismantling criminal fraud networks and halting the theft of taxpayer dollars.”
Former Southern California US Attorney Robert Brewer, who was McDonald’s boss during Trump’s first term, called him “a career public servant as well as a fearless, strong and ethical prosecutor.”
“I assigned him to a very difficult public corruption case in Hawaii that seriously needed his organizational and legal skills. As expected, he was invaluable in resolving the case in a most favorable way,” Brewer said.
“Mr. McDonald is exceedingly bright, dedicated and is a great leader. The American people can trust his judgment, his ethics and will be proud of his work.”
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