Suspect in Court Today for Anti-Jewish "Act of Terror" on Pearl Street in Boulder

On Sunday, June 1, Boulder police responded to an attack on demonstrators raising awareness about Israeli hostages still held in Gaza. The FBI has labeled it "an act of terror."

At 2:08 p.m., the Boulder Police Department issued a statement on social media saying it was "responding to a report of an attack at 13th and Pearl streets with reports of several victims," and asking people to clear the area.

At the first news conference following the incident, Boulder Police Chief Steve Redfearn told reporters that injuries ranged from serious to minor. "Our initial call, as I mentioned, was a report that someone was setting people on fire," he said outside the post office at Pearl Street and 15th Avenue, just blocks from the attack. "That is fairly consistent with the injuries that we found on scene, but we're not 100 percent certain how that happened."

The attack was aimed at a group of walkers gathered for the regular Run for Their Lives demonstration, calling for the immediate release of the hostages held by Hamas." Similar demonstrations have been held weekly around the country since the attack on October 7, 2023.

Law enforcement officials have now identified eight victims: Four women and four men ages 52 to 88 were taken to Denver metro hospitals. According to CNN, one was a Holocaust survivor.

At a 6:30 p.m. press conference, Mark Michalek, the FBI special agent in charge, identified the suspect in custody as Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, of Colorado Springs. According to witnesses, he said, the man yelled “Free Palestine” and threw an incendiary device into the crowd.

The FBI confirmed that there are six victims, all over sixty, who have been taken for medical treatment, and that the suspect used a makeshift flame-thrower as well as Molotov cocktails.

Multiple charges have been filed against Soliman, who is expected in court today; he's being held on a $10 million bond.
According to Homeland Security, he was in the country illegally, after overstaying a 2022 visitor visa.

Although he has not released the charges Soliman will face, Boulder County District Attorney Michael Dougherty promises to "secure justice for the victims."

Just hours after the attack, FBI Director Kash Patel wrote on X, "We are aware of and fully investigating a targeted terror attack in Boulder, Colorado. Our agents and local law enforcement are on the scene already, and we will share updates as more information becomes available."

FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino also took to social media: "We are investigating this incident as an act of terror, and targeted violence. All of the necessary assets will be dedicated to this investigation."

At the 6:30 p.m. press conference, Redfearn thanked the FBI and other law enforcement partners for their work on the case, and encouraged people to contact authorities with any tips. "Boulder is not immune to tragedy," he noted. "I urge the community to come together. Now is not the time to be divisive."

Earlier, Redfearn had said it was too early to label the incident a terrorist attack, and he did not offer an update of that statement at the 6:30 p.m. press conference.

By then, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser has said that “this attack appears to be a hate crime given the group that was targeted...people may have differing views about world events and the Israeli-Hamas conflict, but violence is never the answer to settling differences.”

Boulder's Jewish community issued a joint statement: "We are saddened and heartbroken to learn that an incendiary device was thrown at walkers at the Run for Their Lives walk on Pearl Street as they were raising awareness for the hostages still held in Gaza.... Our hearts go out to those who witnessed this horrible attack, and prayers for a speedy recovery to those who were injured.:

The Mountain States ADL also issued a statement: "The attack comes just hours before the Jewish holiday of Shavuot and follows a disturbing national and global trend of antisemitic violence. This is the second violent attack on the U.S. Jewish community in two weeks. First, a young couple was slaughtered in Washington, D.C. Now, a firebomb was thrown at a group in Boulder....We must use this moment as a wake-up call: the rising tide of antisemitism in America demands urgent action from all of us, and we must stand in solidarity together. This fight against hate needs all of us."

Ironically, the violence occurred by the historic Boulder County Courthouse, which was recently designated a National Historic Landmark in recognition of Boulder's commitment to justice, equality and inclusion; Boulder County Commissioners celebrated that honor on May 30.

The courthouse became a beacon of equality and justice in 1975, when clerk Clela Rorex issued the first same-sex marriage license in the nation. As she explained years later, “After having been so deeply involved in the women’s rights movements, who was I to then deny a right to anyone else? It wasn’t my job to legislate morality.”

Boulder has closed public offices downtown in the wake of the attack.

This story was updated following the 6:30 p.m. June 1 press conference, and will be updated again.