Boulder firebombing suspect disguised himself as gardener to approach victims, arrest documents say ...Middle East

The man accused of firebombing a group of peaceful demonstrators in Boulder on Sunday told investigators that he dressed up as a gardener, wearing an orange vest and toting a black bin full of flowers, to get close enough to his intended victims and carry out his attack, according to court documents. 

But hidden in the black bin was also something sinister: 18 Molotov cocktails, which he would use to set the marchers, some of them elderly, ablaze.

Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, told authorities he purchased his supplies at Home Depot as he drove in a Toyota Prius from his home near Colorado Springs to the Pearl Street Mall to follow through on his plans that he had been making for a year. 

The new details were contained in an arrest affidavit filed by police in Boulder County.

Federal prosecutors this week charged him with a hate crime and state prosecutors intend to charge him with attempted murder. Soliman could spend the rest of his life in prison if convicted of the state and federal crimes he’s charged with committing. 

A dozen people, including a Holocaust survivor, were injured in the attack that targeted a group called Run for Their Lives, which had gathered in downtown Boulder in support of Israeli hostages in Gaza. Run for Their Lives has been walking peacefully each week on the Pearl Street Mall for nearly two years to raise awareness of the hostages kidnapped during Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. 

The state arrest affidavit says Soliman purchased a commercial weed sprayer and filled it with gasoline to use as a blowtorch. But Soliman told authorities that he didn’t use the device on anyone “because he had planned on dying.”

“Mohamed mentioned several times he wanted to be dead,” the affidavit said. 

Soliman was burned in the attack, but his injuries were minor.

Instead, Soliman tossed a pair of Molotov cocktails, made out of gasoline and jars purchased at Target, into the Run for Their Lives group. Investigators found 16 unlit cocktails at the scene.

“Mohamed said he only threw at the group because he got scared and had never hurt anyone before,” the affidavit said. “Mohamed said no one knew about his plans and he never talked to his wife or family about it.”

Soliman, who confessed to the crime, also told investigators that his attack “had nothing to do with the Jewish community” and was aimed at Zionists, the affidavit said.

The affidavit also revealed that Mohamed said he used Molotov cocktails in the attack because he was barred from purchasing a gun. He learned how to shoot and took a concealed carry class, but authorities said he was stopped from buying a firearm because he is living in the U.S. illegally. 

Mohamed also told investigators he waited until after his daughter’s high school graduation to carry out the attack. She graduated Thursday.

Soliman came to the U.S. in August 2022 on a B-2 visa that expired in February 2023, Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary of the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement. B-2 visas are used by people entering the U.S. temporarily for things like vacations or to get medical care. 

Soliman filed for asylum in September 2022. McLaughlin did not answer The Colorado Sun’s question on the status of his petition. 

Soliman is next due in state court again later this week after briefly appearing before a judge Monday.

This is a developing story that will be updated.

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