The man accused of attacking peaceful protesters in Boulder earlier this month now faces 12 federal hate crime counts, according to an indictment unsealed in Denver on Wednesday.
Mohamed Sabry Soliman was originally charged with a single federal hate crime on June 2 after he allegedly threw Molotov cocktails at members of Run for Their Lives in front of the Boulder County Courthouse on June 1. The group has been meeting weekly to press for the release of remaining Hamas hostages.
Soliman had been planning the attack for the past year, according to his arrest affidavit. He waited for his eldest daughter to graduate from high school before carrying out the attack, the affidavit said.
Fifteen people and a dog were injured in the attack.
To find Run for their Lives members, he searched for Zionist groups online, he told a detective who interviewed him at the hospital after the attack, and he found the group that met weekly on Sundays in Boulder, the affidavit said.
On the morning of the attack, he bought materials to make Molotov cocktails, which he learned to put together by watching a YouTube video. He arrived on the Pearl Street Mall dressed as a gardener to get as close to the victims as possible. He covered himself in gas because he “planned to die,” the affidavit added.
He then allegedly threw two Molotov cocktails into the crowd, while yelling, “Free Palestine,” witnesses told police. The firebombs ignited in the crowd, officials said.
A federal prosecutor earlier said, citing an interview with Soliman, that he “wanted them all to die, had no regrets and would do it all again.”
Prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s office initially charged Soliman with the federal hate crime the day following the attack. A single charge carries a possible sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. His next federal court appearance is set for Friday.
One week ago, a judge decided in a preliminary hearing that enough evidence exists to move forward with a trial on the initial hate crime charge.
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In a full courtroom during the hearing, the defendant sat emotionless during the two hours of debate between the prosecution and defense over whether Soliman’s crime targeted a group of people based on the “national origin” category in order to qualify as a hate crime.
Federal prosecutors claimed that Soliman committed a hate crime based on his perception of national origin, while the defense insisted there is no evidence the defendant identified victims based on them being from Israel.
Prosecutors in the preliminary hearing argued that Soliman’s actions qualify as a hate crime because he was projecting his hatred for Zionists onto a group of people visibly associated with Israel, as shown by Israeli flags and Israeli origin listed on signs at the event.
“He saw Israeli flags, he saw a child in a wheelchair with a Yarmulke and Israeli flag … and he lit the wick and threw the bomb, and projected upon them his hatred for Zionists,” a prosecutor said during the hearing.
The defense, meanwhile, argued that Soliman was very clear in his hatred toward “Zionists” as a group of people with certain political beliefs, which is not a protected group for the definition of a hate crime. In his interviews with police and FBI officers, Soliman said he had no problem with the Jewish people and never referenced targeting people from Israel, but rather people with certain political beliefs, the defense said.
“What really matters is did Mr. Soliman define Zionism as a national origin in his mind?” his defense attorney said. “The evidence in the hearing clearly answers ‘no.’ His definition hinges on political views. He did not do a search for Israeli events, he did a search for Zionist events.”
Judge Kathryn Starnella decided there is probable cause to proceed with the case.
Soliman also faces 118 charges, which include attempted first-degree murder, from the 20th Judicial District Attorney’s Office in a related state case. His next court date in that case is July 15.
Denver Gazette reporter Michael Braithwaite contributed to this report.
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