US President Donald Trump has announced the death of Sarah Beckstrom, a 20-year-old National Guard soldier who was shot in a targeted attack near the White House this week. Speaking during a Thanksgiving call to US troops on Thursday, Trump said Beckstrom had succumbed to her wounds, describing her as a 'highly respected, young, magnificent person'. The second guard member, Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, 24, remains in critical condition, 'fighting for his life', according to the president.
The alleged assailant, 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national who entered the US under a resettlement programme, will now face upgraded charges. US Attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanne Pirro, confirmed that Lakanwal will be charged with first-degree murder. Attorney General Pam Bondi has stated she will urge prosecutors to seek the death penalty, calling Lakanwal a 'monster' who should not have been in the country.
Beckstrom's father, Gary Beckstrom, had earlier told the New York Times that his daughter was unlikely to recover, saying, 'I'm holding her hand right now. She has a mortal wound. It's not going to be a recovery.' Beckstrom, from Webster Springs, West Virginia, joined the National Guard in June 2023. West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey praised her courage and sense of duty in a social media post.
Investigators are probing the motives of Lakanwal, who was shot at the scene by a third guard member and is being treated in hospital for non-life-threatening wounds. The FBI Director, Kash Patel, has confirmed the shooting is being investigated as an act of terrorism. Lakanwal, who Trump called a 'savage monster', was part of a CIA-backed unit in Afghanistan before being admitted to the US in 2021 under a resettlement programme. He was granted asylum in April this year under the Trump administration.
Officials have stated that Lakanwal drove across the country to launch an 'ambush-style' attack using a .357 Smith & Wesson revolver, shooting one guard member twice before turning on the second. Search warrants have been executed at his home in Washington state and in San Diego, California. The suspect's former landlord said he had been living with his wife and five children.
