ANCHORAGE (AP) -- A jury declared Nezar ''Mike'' Maad guilty of federal fraud charges Tuesday following nearly a week of testimony in the Anchorage businessman's trial.
Maad was found guilty of two counts of falsifying loan applications, one count of wire fraud and two counts of making false statements to the government. The charges involved his now-closed Frontier Printing Services.
The business closed in December, three days after Maad was arrested.
Maad and his wife, Joanne, had received widespread community sympathy after someone damaged equipment at their print shop and wrote, ''We hate Arabs'' on a wall soon after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
No charges have been filed with regard to the damage. But assistant U.S. attorney Dan Cooper said Tuesday the Maads are suspects in the case. He added there are other suspects as well.
The fraud case emerged while the FBI was investigating the property damage.
During the trial in U.S. District Court, Cooper said Maad lied about his finances to get a $242,000 loan from Northrim Bank that was guaranteed by the Small Business Administration. Cooper said Maad also lied on a financial statement faxed to a leasing company in Georgia.
Cooper said Maad made false statements on the SBA application by failing to reveal his 1986 bankruptcy filing and two shoplifting convictions.
Federal defender Rich Curtner said Maad never intended to mislead anyone. He blamed the discrepancies on carelessness and a lack of accounting savvy on Maad's part.
During the trial, Curtner called character witnesses to testify on behalf of Maad, who did not take the stand.
Maad, 43, looked down at the defense table as the verdict was read Tuesday, while in the front row his wife's shoulders shook.
Afterward, Cooper asked U.S. District Judge James Singleton Jr. to return Maad to custody because he could pose a flight risk. Curtner disagreed, saying Maad had no passport and had many family members in Anchorage.
Singleton decided to let Maad remain free on the same conditions set at his initial release from custody. Among the conditions: Maad will continue to be monitored electronically and will remain housebound other than for such trips as appointments with Curtner.
Maad and his wife left the court arm in arm. Asked if he had any comments, Maad shook his head and mouthed, ''no.'' Following the couple were many supporters who regularly attended the trial.
Cooper said he was not surprised Maad was found guilty on all five counts. ''The jury system works wonderfully well,'' he said.
Maad faces a maximum penalty of 75 years in prison and fines totaling $2.75 million. His sentencing is set for May 9.
