By Holmes Lybrand and Priscilla Alvarez, CNN
A bomb disposal robot at the site of an attack on demonstrators calling for the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza, in Boulder, Colorado, on June 1, 2025. Photo: AFP/ELI IMADALI
The family of the Egyptian national charged with attempted murder after an antisemitic Molotov cocktail attack in Boulder, Colorado has been taken into ICE custody, a DHS official confirmed to CNN on Tuesday.
The suspected attacker, Mohamed Soliman, has a wife and five children, according to court filings. The US immigration status of those six family members, who are currently being held in Florence, Colorado, is unclear.
The FBI identified Soliman as the lone suspect in the attack, in which he is accused of using a makeshift flamethrower and Molotov cocktails to set people on fire at an event in Boulder held in support of hostages in Gaza.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem confirmed on Tuesday that Soliman's family has been taken into ICE custody, adding that federal officials were investigating whether they knew about or provided support for the attack last Sunday.
"Today, the Department of Homeland Security and ICE are taking the family of suspected Boulder, Colorado terrorist, and illegal alien, Mohamed Soliman, into ICE custody," Noem said.
She added: "We're also investigating to what extent his family knew about this horrific attack, if they had any knowledge of it or if they provided support to it."
Soliman, who now faces federal hate crime and multiple state felony charges, appeared in state court on Monday and is expected to appear in federal court on Friday. CNN has reached out to his attorney for comment.
In an interview with federal and local officials after the attack, Soliman said he "wanted to kill all Zionist people", and had been planning the attack for a year.
A dozen people, including a Holocaust survivor, were injured - some with severe burns.
CNN's John Miller and Lauren Mascarenhas contributed to this report.
-CNN
