Former FBI agent warns that visa austration after the Boulder attack is a “national security issue.”
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Former FBI agents say that the number of people living on visas in the US is “National Security Issues“Fifteen people were injured after the terrorist attack in Boulder, Colorado.
Muhammad Sabri Soliman, who is suspected of burning a group of peaceful pro-Israeli protesters on June 1, arrived in the US on August 27, 2022, leaving 15 people injured. His visa was scheduled to end on February 26, 2023, but he was granted permission to work. Soliman is Egyptian citizen.
Soliman’s research approval ended in March 2025, about three months before he was said to have attacked a group of pro-Israel protesters.
a Report About 400,000 people are suspected of overstaying visas in 2023 by the Department of Homeland Security show. In recent years there is government data on this issue. These are individuals who legally obtained a visa to enter the US but did not leave when they were supposed to.
Passengers will pass through TSA checkpoint at Miami International Airport on December 17, 2024 in Miami, Florida. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Former FBI special agent Jonathan Gilliam said Fox News Digital Visa’s inventory is a national security issue.
“I think we showed that it is. A threat to national security. I’ve shown only what I saw in Boulder, Colorado, but there are many other issues that have arisen in this country by people who have overstayed visas and I don’t think people understand the number of these individuals.”
Between 2020 and 2023, Department of Homeland Security data shows that over 1.5 million people have overreached visas.
Gilliam said the longer it takes for reforms to be implemented on the visa system, the more likely the chances of another attack will only increase.
“We need to see all of this, but it can happen again and again because just looking at what happened in Boulder, there’s almost no system in which we see here that monitors people on the visas,” Gilliam said. “And if they are idealistic or if they are grown to believe in a fundamental way, there’s nothing to stop them.”
Timeline reveals Boulder’s movements before allegedly fire bomb attacks on pro-Israel groups
Mugshot, 46, of Soliman, 40, was charged with first-degree murder, crimes against an adult/elderly at risk, assault, attempted crimes to commit class 1 and class 2 felony, and using explosives or burnt Cen devices during a felony. (Boulder PD)
One thing that Gilliam said should look at is to monitor people in the US on a visa.
“We have to come up with better ways to track them down, people who guarantee them. And if we have it in place, along with policies that support the law, it’s much easier to determine who’s here, where they’re, and whether they’re overstaying,” he said.
Soliman was in the US on a B1/B2 visa, but he was approved for a job that allowed him to work with Vero Health and Uber.
A spokesman for Vero Health told Fox News Digital that Soliman had been working for the company for about three months and did not explain why he left.
“He was hired in our accounting department. He went through the employment process with his employer (professional employer) ADP. At the time of employment, he was confirmed to have a valid work visa that expired in March 2025,” the spokesman said.
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Law enforcement officials are wearing protective gear to investigate the attack on Pearl Street Mall in Boulder, Colorado. (AP)
Uber also confirmed to Fox News Digital that Soliman began driving towards the company in the spring of 2023, passing a background check for criminal history and driving history.
Soliman was charged with first-degree murder, crimes against an adult/elderly at risk, first-degree assault, attempting to commit a class 1 and class 2 felony, and using an explosive or burnt Cen device during a felony.