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USA Today
15-07-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Suspect in Boulder firebomb attack waives court hearing, faces murder charge
The man charged in the June 1 firebomb attack on a demonstration in Boulder, Colorado, in support of Israeli hostages in Gaza waived his right to a preliminary hearing Tuesday as he appeared in state court. Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, faces dozens of charges that include murder and attempted murder. He is accused of targeting the group at a pedestrian mall, attacking them with Molotov cocktails and a makeshift flamethrower, according to a criminal complaint. He faces over 180 charges from the state of Colorado, increased from an initial 118 charges after the later death of one of the injured victims and identification of more victims. He also faces a federal hate crime charge. Wearing a striped orange-and-white jumpsuit, Soliman agreed to his defense lawyer's request for the waiver, which means the court will find probable cause for all the state charges. Public defender Kathryn Herold also indicated she would pursue a continuance at Soliman's arraignment, now set for Sept. 9. Prosecutors say 13 people were injured in the attack at a Boulder street mall. Karen Diamond, 82, died of her injuries on June 25, officials have said. The charges include two counts of first-degree murder, 52 counts of attempted murder, 10 counts of assault, 18 counts of attempted assault, two counts of using an incendiary device, 16 counts of attempted use of an incendiary device and one count of animal cruelty (prosecutors said a dog was injured in the attack). The most serious charge, first-degree murder, carries a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Soliman could also face a life sentence if he's convicted of the federal hate crime charge. USA TODAY has reached out to Soliman's defense attorney. Soliman is an Egyptian native who authorities said overstayed a tourist visa to the United States. In the wake of the attack, Trump administration officials detained and threatened to deport his wife and children. What happened in the Boulder firebomb attack? The attack happened the afternoon of June 1 at the Pearl Street Mall in downtown Boulder, authorities said. The group Run for Their Lives was holding a weekly demonstration advocating for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas militants. Soliman threw two lit Molotov cocktails into the crowd while yelling, "Free Palestine," according to a federal criminal complaint. A Boulder police officer wrote in an arrest warrant that Soliman admitted to planning the attack for over a year and was waiting for his oldest daughter to graduate from high school, which she had days prior. Witnesses said he threw two Molotov cocktails and used a blow torch to set people on fire. Authorities said in the federal complaint that Soliman admitted to investigators that "he wanted to kill all Zionist people" and wanted to stop them from taking over "our land," referring to Palestine. Jewish woman died from injuries weeks after attack Diamond, a mother and grandmother, was among the group of demonstrators targeted in the attack, authorities said. She initially survived the assault but died more than three weeks later and was privately buried, according to authorities and members of her synagogue, Boulder's Bonai Shalom. "This horrific attack has now claimed the life of an innocent person who was beloved by her family and friends," Boulder District Attorney Michael Dougherty said. After Diamond's death, prosecutors amended two of the charges against Soliman from attempted murder to first-degree murder. One of the counts alleges murder under an extreme indifference theory and the other murder with intent and after deliberation, prosecutors said. Contributing: Trevor Hughes
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Yahoo
82-Year-Old Woman Dies From Injuries Sustained During Attack in Colorado
A woman has died a month after being injured during a mass attack in Boulder, Colorado. The Boulder County District Attorney says Karen Diamond, 82, died of injuries she suffered on the Pearl Street Mall when authorities say a man threw flaming objects at people marching in support of hostages held by Hamas on June 1. The suspect, Mohammed Soliman, 45, will now be charged with first degree murder, according to the DA. Inside Edition Digital's Mara Montalbano has more.
BBC News
30-06-2025
- BBC News
Woman dies from injuries suffered in Boulder antisemitic attack
An 82-year-old woman who was one of the 12 victims in an attack on a gathering in support of Israeli hostages has died from her injuries in Colorado, officials Diamond was severely injured after the suspect, Mohamed Sabry Soliman, shouting "free Palestine" tossed Molotov cocktails at the group in what federal officials have called a "terrorist attack". The suspect told police after he was arrested that he wanted to "kill all Zionist people", according to court of the death of one of the victims, prosecutors are now adding new first-degree murder charges in addition to multiple others faced by the suspect, who remains jailed. Diamond was among the 20 or so people gathered on 1 June to participate in a Run for Their Lives gathering at Pearl Street Mall in Boulder, Colorado, to generate awareness for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza. She died as a result of "the severe injuries that she suffered in the attack", the district attorney's office said. "This horrific attack has now claimed the life of an innocent person who was beloved by her family and friends," District Attorney Michael Dougherty said. "Our hearts are with the Diamond family during this incredibly difficult time."Officials say the suspect planned the attack for a year, watching videos on how to make Molotov cocktails before driving from his home in Colorado Springs to Boulder to carry out the attack. The suspect allegedly posed as a gardener wearing a construction vest to get close to the group ahead of the attack, prosecutors the scene of the crime, officials say they found 16 unlit Molotov cocktails in a plastic container within arm's reach, as well as a weed sprayer filled with week, Mr Soliman was indicted on 12 federal hate crime counts. He also faces at least 100 state criminal charges, including attempted murder. Mr Soliman's attorney, David Kraut, entered a not guilty plea on his behalf last week for the hate crime authorities say Mr Soliman, an Egyptian national, has been living in the US illegally with his family. Days after the attack his wife and five children were taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials. Data from the Anti-Defamation League suggests antisemitic incidents spiked to a record level in 2023 and again in 2024.
Yahoo
09-06-2025
- Yahoo
Tourist details newly obtained video of Boulder attack showing people on fire
BOULDER, Colo. (KDVR) — Mass confusion is how the man who recorded a video of the Boulder attack is describing Sunday's incident at the Pearl Street Mall. Alex Osante, a tourist, was visiting from San Diego when the situation unfolded. Witnesses describe 'terrifying' scene of attack at Pearl Street Mall in Boulder In the video, you can see the firebombs being thrown and people running around trying to get water and medical aid. Osante said the whole situation lasted about seven minutes before police arrived on scene. 'I came on vacation for one week to Aspen,' he said. 'After one week, I wanted to see Vail, Breckenridge, and then come to Boulder for one day.' On that Sunday afternoon, chaos ensued. 'I definitely didn't know anything about the walk or what was going on there. I was just having lunch across the street at an Italian restaurant,' Osante said. In the middle of his lunch, he heard a loud boom, and heard frantic screaming. 'When I turned over to look at what was going on, there were people just running around tripping and they were falling,' he said. 'It was hard to understand what was going on. There was a lot of confusion. There were five people that were on fire … who were burning.' Alex said he witnessed victims burning from head to toe. He, along with bystanders, helped provide water to those in distress. 'People from all different backgrounds, ethnicities, and nationalities, as soon as this started happening, we all came together as a big group to find out a solution,' said Osante. Shortly after, he recorded the video so he could dissect what happened later. 'Thankfully, I started recording when I did, so we can capture what was happening there,' Osante said. 'Because I'm the only person who has the video from the beginning to the end showing what really happened, I was able to, after the fact, go back to the video and dissect it to see what really happened. So, when I go back and look at it, I see the man came out of the trees in the bushes a second time with the Molotov cocktails in his hand. He threw it at a lady and when he threw it at the lady, he lit himself on fire. When he lit himself on fire, he went up in flames.' Man helps pour water on victims in Boulder terror attack At the time, he didn't know the suspect was the one responsible for the tragedy. 'It was like, 'Why is this guy on fire?' He must not be one of the — he must not be the person causing this because he is on fire,' said Osante. 'He took off his vest and his shirt and was standing there holding two bottles. We didn't know what the bottles were, but they kind of looked like the bottles of water I was giving to the victims.' He says it's still hard to grasp what unfolded. 'I've been to 87 countries on vacation and all around the world, and never have I seen anything this crazy and this wild where people are on fire,' said Osante. 'I never expected anything like this to happen and it was a complete shock.' Osante said it was devastating to learn the cause of the tragedy. 'Let's make terrorism not great again,' he said. 'When I learned what was actually going on with the political agendas, all of the information we didn't understand at first, it magnified the amplitude and the chaotic experience we all went through. This is going on all over the world. People fighting against each other, happening all around the world, and it needs to stop.' This Sunday at noon, there will be a gathering for Boulder's weekly run for their lives walk as well as the annual Boulder Jewish Festival. In light of the tragedy, security is being coordinated with Boulder police and Colorado State Patrol. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Yahoo
Boulder Jewish Festival proceeds with enhanced security and focus on healing after attack
BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — The group that was attacked last weekend in Boulder, Colorado, while calling for Hamas to release Israeli hostages will be a central focus of the Boulder Jewish Festival, which kicks off Sunday morning in the same location where the firebombing took place. Organizers of the festival, which is in its 30th year, said they have reimagined the cultural celebration to focus on community healing after a man who yelled 'Free Palestine' threw Molotov cocktails at Run for Their Lives demonstrators, according to law enforcement officials. 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. Run for Their Lives, a global grassroots initiative with 230 chapters, started in October 2023 after Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip stormed into Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 250 others hostage. Sunday's festival at the downtown Pearl Street pedestrian mall will center the group's cause — raising awareness of the 55 people believed to still be in captivity in Gaza. The Boulder chapter walks at the mall every weekend for 18 minutes, the numerical value of the Hebrew word 'chai,' which means 'life.' 'It is going to look very different this year. Run for Their Lives is going to be featured front and center,' said Miri Kornfeld, a Run for Their Lives organizer in Denver. 'The community is looking for a way to come together after an act of violence. People just want to be together, and they want to celebrate who they are.' A group representing families of the Israeli hostages plans to send at least one family to join the Boulder chapter Sunday as it resumes its weekly walks during the festival, Kornfeld said. Art, food and music are also planned. In response to the attack, the Boulder Police Department and the FBI are coordinating to provide increased security at the festival, local synagogues and the Boulder Jewish Community Center. Festival attendees can expect drones, SWAT elements and plainclothes officers in the crowd to increase safety and make people feel at ease, police Chief Stephen Redfearn said. 'Any would-be attacker, anybody that might come there to cause harm, I want them to see that we have a lot of people there, and hopefully that dissuades anyone from doing anything nefarious," Redfearn said Thursday. The victims of the attack include eight women and seven men, ranging in age from 25 to 88. One is a Holocaust survivor. Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, was charged Thursday in state court with 118 counts, including attempted murder, assault, illegal use of explosives 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, an Egyptian national who federal authorities say was living in the U.S. illegally, told police he was driven by a desire 'to kill all Zionist people," a reference to the movement to establish and sustain a Jewish state in Israel. Authorities said he expressed no remorse about the attack. U.S. immigration officials took Soliman's wife and five children, who also are Egyptian, into custody Tuesday. They have not been charged in the attack. A federal judge on Wednesday granted a request to block the deportation of Soliman's wife and children. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, who is Jewish, has deemed the attack antisemitic, meaning it targeted Jewish people because of their identity or beliefs. Organizers have not confirmed whether all the demonstrators last Sunday were Jewish. The group is open to Jewish and non-Jewish participants. The violence in downtown Boulder unfolded against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war, which continues to inflame global tensions and has contributed to a spike in antisemitism in the U.S. It also came at the start of the holiday of Shavuot, which commemorates God giving the Torah to the Jewish people at Mount Sinai in Egypt. 'In the wake of the most violent antisemitic terrorist attack in Colorado history, we are reminded of the profound power of standing shoulder to shoulder,' Mindy Miller of Stop Antisemitism Colorado said at a community vigil Wednesday night. 'Let today be the beginning of a new chapter in Colorado — one where Jews no longer have to stand alone.' ___ Schoenbaum reported from Salt Lake City.
