12 Counts: Federal Prosecutors Seek Life Plus 50 Years for Boulder Firebombing

Boulder residents learned Thursday that the man responsible for last year’s deadly firebombing faces a maximum sentence of life in prison plus 50 years. Mohamed Soliman entered guilty pleas to twelve federal counts in a Denver courtroom. The federal government will ask Judge John Kane to impose that maximum term. Soliman is already serving a life sentence for state charges he accepted last spring.

The attack occurred in June 2025 on Pearl Street, a pedestrian mall in downtown Boulder. Soliman approached a weekly protest group called "Run for Their Lives" by posing as a gardener. The demonstrators were marching in support of hostages taken during the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel. Soliman threw two lit Molotov cocktails at the crowd. The flames severely burned Karen Diamond, who was 82 at the time, and injured a dozen other people.

Diamond died three weeks after the firebombing. Her family described her final days as a period of "indescribable pain." Federal prosecutors alleged that Soliman targeted the group because the demonstrators were Jewish. He admitted to nine federal hate crime counts, including one count for causing Diamond’s death and eight counts for attempting to kill other demonstrators. Three additional counts involved federal weapons charges.

Soliman spoke through an interpreter during the hearing. He wore a brown shirt and khaki pants. He responded to the judge’s questions with brief answers of "yes" and "no." He did not look at the victims seated in the gallery. He was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs and leg shackles.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Hindman told the court that the defendant used explosives to cause permanent and life-threatening injuries. She stated that the attack resulted in the death of Karen Diamond. Several victims attended the hearing but declined to read their impact statements at this stage. Hindman said they intend to share their accounts during the sentencing phase.

Judge John Kane said he would review the sentencing guidelines before making a final decision. He noted that the guidelines are not binding on the court. "I have not made up my mind about the sentence," Kane said. "Sometimes I follow that advice and sometimes I don’t." The federal sentencing hearing is scheduled for January 7.

Federal authorities said Soliman planned the attack for about a year. He arrived in the United States in 2022 on a tourist visa that expired the following year. He later filed for asylum and received work authorization, which also expired. At the time of the attack, he lived in an apartment in Colorado Springs with his wife and five children. He worked low-paying jobs. The couple divorced in April. Soliman recently dropped his opposition to removing his family from the country.

State prosecutors previously noted that Soliman brought 18 Molotov cocktails to the scene but only threw two. They argued he planned for more harm than he executed, noting he was denied permission to buy a gun twice. Soliman told police after his arrest that he sought to kill all Zionist people. An injured dog resulted in a separate state animal cruelty charge.

During his state plea in May, Soliman said he had known and respected Jewish people. He questioned the deaths of innocent people in Israeli attacks on Gaza. "Yes, I am against Israel and I can’t deny that. And that is my right," Soliman said then. The federal case now focuses on the specific intent and the severity of the injuries caused during the Pearl Street incident.