Guilty Plea Entered in Federal Court for Boulder Attack

Mohamed Soliman, who had already admitted to over 100 state criminal charges including first-degree murder, appeared in federal court. He changed his plea to guilty for a dozen charges related to the attack on Pearl Street Mall in June 2025.

Soliman confessed to the assault conducted during a demonstration supporting Israeli captives held by Hamas. Prosecutors reported that Soliman threw Molotov cocktails at the group, resulting in one death and injuring over a dozen individuals.

“Here is why the federal case is important in addition to the state case: The federal case holds Mohamed Soliman responsible for the hateful ideology that drove his violent acts in June 2025 in Boulder, Colorado,” said U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado, Peter McNeilly.

The attack happened while the group Run for Their Lives was marching downtown Boulder as they had been every Sunday for more than a year. Soliman was found guilty of state charges in May and received a life sentence without parole for first-degree murder and an additional 2,128 years for other charges.

In federal court, Soliman faced 12 hate crime charges. During a hearing at the Arraj Courthouse, he pleaded guilty to these charges. The charges included:

• 1 count – hate crime resulting in death
• 7 counts – violation of hate crime involving bodily injury and intent to kill
• 1 count – hate crime involving attempt to cause bodily injury and attempt to kill
• 2 counts – using fire or an explosive to commit a felony
• 1 count – carrying an explosive during the commission of a felony

The judge declared Soliman competent in his guilty pleas. He had initially pleaded not guilty on June 27, 2025, to these federal charges. Sentencing is scheduled for January 7, 2027. Gov. Polis has suggested a life sentence plus 50 years, although the judge is not bound by guidelines.