Boulder firebombing suspect charged with attempted murder

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BOULDER, Colo. — A man accused of yelling “Free Palestine” and throwing Molotov cocktails at demonstrators calling for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza was charged with 118 counts including attempted murder in a Colorado court Thursday. 

Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, who has been jailed since his arrest following Sunday’s attack, was advised of the charges during a hearing in Boulder, where he appeared in person. Investigators say Soliman, who posed as a gardener, planned it for a year. 

The 118 counts include attempt to commit murder, assault in the first and third degrees, use of explosive or incendiary devices and animal cruelty. He has also been charged with a hate crime in federal court and is jailed on a $10 million cash bond. 

Soliman’s attorney, Kathryn Herold, waived a formal reading of the charges Thursday. A preliminary hearing has been set for July 15 to determine whether the state has enough evidence to move forward. 

“The charges reflect the evidence that we have regarding this horrific attack that took place and the seriousness of it,” Michael Dougherty, the Boulder County district attorney, said at a news conference after the hearing. 

Authorities have said 15 people and a dog were victims of the attack. Not all were physically injured, and some are considered victims for the legal case because they were in the area and could potentially have been hurt. The dog was among the injured, Dougherty said. 

Soliman is accused of trying to kill 14 people and faces two attempted murder charges for each. 

Soliman had intended to kill all of the roughly 20 participants the weekly demonstration at the popular Pearl Street pedestrian mall, but he threw just two of his 18 Molotov cocktails while yelling “Free Palestine,” police said. 

Soliman did not carry out his full plan “because he got scared and had never hurt anyone before,” police wrote in an affidavit. 

Officers responded and took Soliman into custody about five minutes after the 911 call, Police Chief Stephen Redfearn said at the news conference. 

According to an FBI affidavit, Soliman told police he was driven by a desire “to kill all Zionist people” — a reference to the movement to establish and protect a Jewish state in Israel. Authorities said he expressed no remorse. 

Boulder County officials said in a statement that the victims included eight women and seven men ranging in age from 25 to 88. 

Defendant’s family investigated

Authorities say Soliman acted alone and did not tell his wife and five children, who have not been charged in the attack, but they were taken into custody Tuesday by immigration officials. The following day a judge granted a request to block their deportation. 

Attorneys for the family had sued over their detention, writing in their complaint that “It is patently unlawful to punish individuals for the crimes of their relatives.” 

Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin called the plaintiff’s claims “absurd” and “an attempt to delay justice.” She said the entire family was living in the U.S. illegally. 

When asked whether Soliman’s family was under investigation, Dougherty, the district attorney, did not give a clear answer and said the investigation was ongoing. 

Soliman’s wife, Hayam El Gamal, a 17-year-old daughter, two minor sons and two minor daughters were being held at an immigration detention centre in Texas, said Eric Lee, an attorney representing the family. 

Soliman told authorities that no one, including his family, knew he was planning an attack, according to court documents. El Gamal said she was “shocked” to learn of his arrest, according to the lawsuit. 

The family’s immigration status

Before moving to Colorado Springs three years ago, Soliman spent 17 years in Kuwait, according to court documents. 

He arrived in the U.S. in August 2022 on a tourist visa that expired in February 2023, McLaughlin said in a post on the social platform X. She said he filed for asylum in September 2022 and was granted a work authorization in March 2023, but that has also expired. 

Hundreds of thousands of people overstay their visas each year in the United States, according to Department of Homeland Security reports. 

Soliman’s wife is an Egyptian national, according to her lawsuit. She is a network engineer and has a pending EB-2 visa, which is available to professionals with advanced degrees, the suit said. She and her children all are listed as dependents on Soliman’s asylum application. 

A vigil for the victims

Hundreds of people squeezed into the Jewish Community Center in Boulder for a vigil Wednesday evening that featured prayer, singing and emotional testimony from a victim and witnesses of the the attack. 

Rachelle Halpern, who has participated in such demonstrations since 2023, said recalled thinking it was strange to see a man with a canister looking like he was going to spray pesticide on the grass. Then she heard a crash and screams and saw flames around her feet. 

“A woman stood one foot behind me, engulfed in flames from head to toe, lying on the ground with her husband,” Halpern said. “People immediately, three or four men immediately rushed to her to smother the flames.” 

Her description prompted murmurs from the audience. One woman’s head dropped into her hands. 

“I heard a loud noise, and the back of my legs burning, and don’t remember those next few moments,” one victim, who did not want to be identified and spoke off camera, said over the event’s speakers. “Even as I was watching it unfold before my eyes, even then, it didn’t seem real.” 

— Bedayn reported from Denver. Associated Press writers Hallie Golden in Seattle, Eric Tucker and Rebecca Santana in Washington and Hannah Schoenbaum in Salt Lake City contributed.