Man who firebombed a demonstration in Colorado, killing 1, is sentenced to life in prison

Man who firebombed a demonstration in Colorado, killing 1, is sentenced to life in prison

Briefly

"Authorities say Soliman threw two Molotov cocktails at demonstrators at a pedestrian mall in downtown Boulder, a city of 100,000 people northwest of Denver that's home to the University of Colorado. Karen Diamond, 82, was injured in the attack and later died. A dozen others were also injured. Soliman is an Egyptian national who federal authorities say was living in the U.S. illegally. Investigators allege he planned the attack for a year and was driven by a desire "to kill all Zionist people.""

"Speaking to the court through an interpreter for nearly a half hour, Soliman offered apologies to the victims and condolences for Diamond's death. "There are no words that can express my sadness for her passing," Soliman said. He said he wasn't asking for leniency at sentencing for his convictions in state court and wants prosecutors pressing federal hate crime charges against him to seek the death penalty. "If I went back, I would not have done this as this is not according to the teaching of Islam," Soliman said. "What I did came out of myself and only myself.""

"In a statement read earlier in court by a prosecutor, Diamond's sons asked that Soliman not be allowed to see his family again "since he is responsible for our mother never seeing her family again." Andrew and Ethan Diamond said their mother suffered "indescribable pain" for "

"Mohamed Sabry Soliman looked down at a desk throughout the sentencing. He has meanwhile pleaded not guilty to federal hate crime charges for the attack last June. Prosecutors are weighing whether to seek the death penalty in the federal case, according to his attorneys."