Foto: Boulder Police Department
A federal judge has issued an order stopping the deportation of the family of Mohamed Sabry Soliman, the Egyptian man accused of an antisemitic attack in Boulder, Colorado. On Wednesday (June 4), U.S. District Judge Gordon P. Gallagher directed the federal government to halt deportation proceedings for Soliman's wife and five children, who were taken into ICE custody on Tuesday (June 3). The judge's order prevents their removal from Colorado or the United States until further notice from the court or the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Soliman, the sole suspect in the attack, faces federal hate crime charges and state charges of attempted murder. The attack involved using a makeshift flamethrower and Molotov cocktails at a demonstration in support of hostages in Gaza. According to the FBI, Soliman had planned to kill all 20 participants but only threw two of the 18 Molotov cocktails he had prepared.
The family, consisting of Soliman's 41-year-old wife, an 18-year-old daughter, two minor daughters, and two minor sons, are all Egyptian citizens. They have not been charged in connection with the attack. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had planned to transfer them to a detention facility in Texas, but it is unclear to which country they were to be deported.
Soliman arrived in the United States on a tourist visa in August 2022 and applied for asylum in September 2022. He received a two-year work authorization, which expired in March 2023. The attack occurred amidst rising antisemitic violence in the U.S. against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem stated that authorities are investigating the extent of the family's knowledge or involvement in the attack. Soliman, however, told detectives that his family was unaware of his plans.
Soliman is currently held on a $10 million cash bond and is scheduled to appear in state court on Thursday (June 5) and federal court on Friday (June 6).