A federal court intervened on Wednesday to block the planned deportation of Mohamed Sabry Soliman’s wife and children following his arrest in connection with Sunday’s firebomb assault targeting Jews in Boulder, Colorado, according to The Associated Press.
Judge Gordon P. Gallagher of the US District Court approved an emergency request to pause deportation procedures against Soliman’s family, who were taken into custody by immigration enforcement officials on Tuesday.
The individuals include Soliman’s spouse, his 18-year-old daughter, and four younger children. All of them are Egyptian nationals and have not been implicated in the criminal act. Soliman, 45, is currently facing both federal hate crime allegations and attempted murder charges under state law.
Law enforcement officials said Soliman had initially intended to murder roughly 20 people at a rally held on the Pearl Street pedestrian mall, but instead ended up hurling only two of the 18 Molotov cocktails he had prepared, all while shouting “Free Palestine,” as noted by police.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed that Soliman’s family had been detained, saying, “We are investigating to what extent his family knew about this heinous attack, if they had knowledge of it, or if they provided support to it.”
Court filings state that Soliman insisted to investigators that his relatives had no knowledge of what he was planning and did not assist him in any way.
According to an affidavit from the FBI, Soliman allegedly confessed that his motive was “to kill all Zionist people” and that he showed no remorse for his actions. The incident took place amid a rising wave of antisemitic attacks throughout the United States.
Records show Soliman first entered the country in August 2022 on a tourist visa, which expired in February 2023. He submitted an asylum application the following month and was granted work authorization in March of that year, which has since lapsed.
He is being held on a $10 million cash-only bail and is due to appear before a state judge on Thursday.
{Matzav.com}