Reaction to the allegations was swift. After the indictment, several politicians returned money Fabian donated to their campaigns. Steele, who returned $4,200 in donations, did not return multiple calls for comment. Romney, who returned the $2,300 Fabian personally donated to his campaign, declined to comment through a spokesman.
Fabian was also asked to resign from the board of the Cambridge School in Pikesville, the private Christian school attended by two of his children, after six years of volunteer service.
After Fabian pleaded guilty, Gov. Martin O'Malley asked agencies that hired CMAT's for-profit affiliate to review work done in 2005 and 2006, according to Shaun Adamec, a spokesman. There is no evidence of impropriety, Adamec said, "but we want to make sure."
The government totals the fraud at about $40 million - $32 million from Solarcom and almost $8 million from the banks. But Fabian's attorney, James Wyda, says it's no more than half that. He and Fabian declined to be interviewed for this article.
"Alan is trying as best he can to protect his wife and kids. It's a painful time," Wyda said in an e-mail.
Fabian faces a maximum of 30 years on the mail fraud count and three years on the tax count. His bankruptcy cases - for SPI Inc. and the nonprofit entity of CMAT - continue. The Maximus case is awaiting arbitration.
And former CMAT employees still can't understand any of it.
"It completely boggles my mind," said Barr, who was a senior vice president at the center. "I've always presumed him innocent."
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