Federal Judge Blocks Deportation of Family of Boulder Attack Suspect Amid Legal Challenge

Law enforcement officers detain a suspect, after an attack that injured multiple people, in Boulder, Colorado, on June 1, 2025.

A federal judge has halted the deportation of the wife and five children of Mohamed Soliman, the Egyptian national charged in connection with a violent antisemitic attack in Boulder, Colorado. The order came just one day after the federal government signaled that the family's removal from the United States was imminent.

Judge Gordon P. Gallagher of the U.S. District Court in Colorado issued an emergency ruling on Wednesday preventing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from deporting Soliman’s family. Gallagher directed that the family not be removed from the District of Colorado or the United States “unless or until this Court or the Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit vacates this order.”

This image provided by the Boulder Police Dept. shows Mohamed Sabry Soliman

The judge cited “irreparable harm” as grounds for the immediate injunction, emphasizing that deportation without due process could have severe consequences. The urgency of the case prompted the court to act without prior notice.

Soliman’s wife and children were taken into ICE custody on Tuesday and allegedly held without access to legal counsel or communication, according to court filings. The family’s attorneys argued that they had filed for asylum and that their removal could not be lawfully expedited without a fair hearing.

Soliman’s wife reportedly expressed shock over her husband’s arrest and maintained that neither she nor their five children — including a four-year-old — should be penalized for his alleged actions.

Legal counsel for the family condemned the government's actions, calling the attempt to deport them “an assault on core democratic principles.” Attorney Eric Lee stated, “Punishing individuals — including children — for the purported actions of their relatives is a feature of medieval justice systems or police state dictatorships, not democracies.”

Law enforcement officials investigate after an attack in Boulder, Colorado, on Sunday

None of Soliman’s family members have been charged in connection with the attack.

Soliman is accused of carrying out a violent hate crime using Molotov cocktails and a makeshift flamethrower during a downtown Boulder event supporting hostages in Gaza. He faces federal hate crime charges and multiple state charges, including attempted murder. The attack injured at least 15 people between the ages of 25 and 88, and also harmed a dog, according to the FBI’s Denver field office.

Law enforcement sources said the family was being held in Florence, Colorado, with plans underway to transfer them to a Texas detention facility. It remains unclear which country ICE intended to deport them to, though the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) confirmed the family holds Egyptian citizenship.

The family arrived in the United States in August 2022, receiving entry until February 2023. Soliman filed for asylum in September 2022 and was granted a two-year work authorization, which expired in March 2025.

In response to the attack, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem ordered a broader review of immigration records and a crackdown on visa overstays. Noem said officials were investigating whether Soliman’s family had any prior knowledge of or connection to the attack. However, according to a law enforcement affidavit, Soliman told investigators that he acted alone and never discussed his plans with his wife or children.

Soliman appeared in state court on Monday and is scheduled to return for additional hearings later this week in both state and federal court.