Boulder firebombing suspect to plead guilty, asks that family remain in United States as witnesses

A court filing over the weekend says the suspect in the Boulder firebombing attack intends to plead guilty to all state charges later this week and is asking that his family stay in the country as material witnesses in his case.

Mohamed Soliman is accused of attacking a group at Pearl Street Mall in June 2025 while they were walking to raise awareness for Israeli captives held by Hamas. Boulder police say that Soliman threw two Molotov cocktails at the group, injuring at least 10 people and killing another.

Soliman faces 12 federal hate crime charges and 118 state criminal charges in connection with the attack.

After the attack, Soliman's now ex-wife, Hayam El-Gamal, and their five children were questioned by law enforcement and then taken into Immigrations and Customs Enforcement custody. After which, they were detained at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas, for more than 10 months.

Soliman and his family members are Egyptian Citizens who moved from Kuwait to the United States in 2022 on B-2 visitor visas. They applied for asylum after arriving.

There have been multiple efforts to deport the family from the United States. DHS says the family overstayed their visas and "Under President Trump, DHS will continue to fight for the removal of those who have no right to be in our country, especially national security threats."

On Friday, May 1, attorneys for the Department of Homeland Security asked the federal court in Denver to dissolve the stay of removal of Soliman's ex-wife and five children from Colorado.  The government argues that the family's case belongs not in Colorado, but rather with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, given the family's detention in Texas, and the pending claims before that court.  The stay was issued on April 25th, when ICE attempted to deport Hayam El Gamal and her kids.

It argues regarding the Colorado district court, "This court's stay thus interferes with the public interest by interfering with a final order of removal, in a manner that violates the statutory scheme established by Congress, which, as discussed, provides the exclusive authority to grant such a stay to the appropriate court of appeals."

The El Gamal family's attorneys, meanwhile, filed new motions on Monday, May 4, including a motion for a temporary restraining order prohibiting the re-detention and removal of the five children and their mother.  The filing argues that the government must start a new removal case against the family, as it effectively removed them and then paroled them when it attempted to fly the family out of the country on April 25th.  It further argued that the family would face a "severe persecution risk in Egypt" if they were to be sent there.

The motion for a TRO also argued the children's mother has serious health conditions, so placing her on a removal flight would endanger the children. They "would be effectively orphaned, because their other biological parent abandoned them and will likely be incarcerated the rest of his life."

According to Soliman's lawyers, the family can't be removed because they're witnesses in his case.

In a court filing on May 3, his lawyers stated that Mr. Soliman intends to plead guilty to all state charges on May 7. If accepted, the Boulder County District Court would be required to sentence him to life without parole and at least 400 years based on the plea.

They said Soliman also offered to plead guilty to the federal charges against him and accept a life sentence. However, the government has not yet accepted the offer because it is considering pursuing the death penalty. The court filing states that, under the law, Soliman has the right to call live witnesses to testify in person during the presentation of capital sentencing evidence.

It asserts that, "The United States Government has made its intentions abundantly clear: it will never give up its effort to deport Mr. Soliman's ex-wife and children. If the government removes these key witnesses and seeks the death penalty against Mr. Soliman, the ensuing proceedings will violate Mr. Soliman's Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendment rights."

The Fifth and Sixth Amendments provide protections for those in legal proceedings and guarantee rights to individuals facing prosecution. The Eighth Amendment prohibits courts from imposing excessive bail, fines, or cruel and unusual punishment.

Although investigators found no evidence that the family was aware of Soliman's plans ahead of the attack, his lawyers argue that they lived with him for years and shared close relationships, so they have information that is material to his guilt or punishment.