The attack occurred on June 1, 2025, at Pearl Street Mall, where Soliman threw two Molotov cocktails at demonstrators supporting Israeli hostages held by Hamas. Prosecutors said he disguised himself as a gardener before the attack. Karen Diamond, 82, died on June 25 from injuries sustained in the attack, according to authorities.
At least 10 people were injured, though some reports say a dozen others were wounded. ' according to The Guardian - World. He had more than two dozen Molotov cocktails with him at the time.
Soliman has pleaded not guilty in federal court to hate crime charges. Federal prosecutors allege the victims were targeted because of their perceived or actual connection to Israel, according to court documents. His federal defense lawyers argue he should not have been charged with hate crimes because he was motivated by opposition to Zionism.
Federal prosecutors have been weighing whether to seek the death penalty in the federal case, according to his attorneys. Soliman last year offered to plead guilty to federal hate-crime charges in exchange for life in prison, according to his federal attorneys. Soliman is an Egyptian national living in the US without documentation, according to federal authorities.
' He told investigators he intended to kill the roughly 20 participants at the weekly demonstration. Soliman had been living with his family in a two-bedroom apartment in Colorado Springs. He moved to the US from Kuwait in 2022 with his wife and five children, worked low-paying jobs, and divorced in April.
Fox News Digital previously reported that Soliman originally planned to buy a gun but was denied due to his immigration status. Soliman initially pleaded not guilty in state court to murder and dozens of attempted murder and assault charges. His attorneys revealed he would plead guilty in a recent court filing in a related federal case.
The exact number of state charges is unclear, with sources citing either 118 or 184 counts. Soliman's ex-wife, Hayam El-Gamal, and their five children were taken into ICE custody after the attack, according to immigration authorities. The family, Egyptian citizens who moved to the US from Kuwait on B-2 visitor visas and applied for asylum, were detained at the South Texas Family Residential Center for more than 10 months, according to their attorneys.
DHS says the family overstayed their visas and are national security threats. On May 1, DHS attorneys asked a federal court to dissolve a stay of removal issued on April 25 when ICE attempted to deport them, according to court records. The family's attorneys filed for a temporary restraining order, arguing they would face severe persecution in Egypt if deported.
Soliman's attorneys argue his family should stay as material witnesses in his federal case. The family was briefly released in April, then taken back into custody, then released again within four days, according to their legal representatives. On Thursday, they were released from a Texas detention center, briefly detained again on Saturday in Boulder, put on a plane bound for Egypt, then freed again, according to their attorneys.
Soliman is asking for his ex-wife and children to remain in the US as a condition of his guilty plea, according to court filings. El-Gamal has not been charged with a crime and said she did not know about the planned attack, according to her statements.