Sarah Beckstrom Killed in D.C. Ambush; Fellow Guardsman Andrew Wolfe in Critical Condition, Trump Announces

National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom, 20, has died from injuries sustained in Wednesday’s shooting near the White House, President Donald Trump announced on Thursday.

“Sarah Beckstrom of West Virginia, one of the guardsmen that we’re talking about, highly respected, young, magnificent person … she’s just passed away. She’s no longer with us,” Trump said in his first live remarks since the attack.

Beckstrom was one of two West Virginia National Guard troops shot in what authorities have described as a targeted assault. The second member, Andrew Wolfe, 24, remains in critical condition, according to the president.

Earlier Thursday, Beckstrom’s father told The New York Times that his daughter was unlikely to survive. “I’m holding her hand right now,” Gary Beckstrom said. “She has a mortal wound. It’s not going to be a recovery.”

Both victims were part of the West Virginia National Guard deployment to Washington, D.C., ordered by Trump as part of his anti-crime initiative in the capital. In a statement, West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey confirmed Beckstrom’s death, praising her “courage, extraordinary resolve, and unwavering sense of duty.”

Beckstrom, from Webster Springs, joined the Guard in June 2023.

Authorities have identified the suspected shooter as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29. Officials say he entered the United States from Afghanistan in 2021 through a program for Afghans who worked with the U.S. government, and was granted asylum in April 2025 under the Trump administration. The CIA confirmed Lakanwal previously worked with CIA-backed military units during the Afghanistan war.

Family members in Afghanistan told the Associated Press that Lakanwal was originally from Khost province and served in a special Afghan Army unit. They described him as a former team leader and GPS specialist who began working with the unit in 2012.

A former landlord said Lakanwal had been living in Washington state with his wife and five children.

At a news conference Thursday, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said Lakanwal drove cross-country to carry out an “ambush-style” attack using a .357 Smith & Wesson revolver. She said the suspect shot one Guard member twice before turning his weapon on the second. Other Guard members on the scene intervened and subdued him.

Pirro said Lakanwal is facing charges including three counts of assault with intent to kill while armed and possession of a firearm during a violent crime. If either victim dies, she said, charges could be upgraded to first-degree murder.

FBI Director Kash Patel said investigators are treating the shooting as a potential act of terrorism. Search warrants have been executed at properties linked to Lakanwal in Washington state and San Diego. Patel said investigators believe he acted alone, and no motive has been identified.

Lakanwal was among approximately 76,000 Afghans resettled in the U.S. after the Taliban takeover in 2021. Supporters of the program say entrants were thoroughly vetted, but Trump and other Republicans have criticized the process as too rapid.

Following the attack, Trump blamed the Biden administration for allowing insufficiently vetted migrants into the country and called for a sweeping review of asylum and immigration cases. That review is now underway.

USCIS announced it has halted processing of all immigration requests related to Afghan nationals. DHS said it will expand the review to include all asylum approvals made under the Biden administration, though it did not specify which countries will be examined.

USCIS Director Joseph Edlow later said the agency is conducting a “full-scale, rigorous” review of green cards for immigrants from “countries of concern,” pointing to Trump’s executive order restricting entry from 19 nations.

Trump also announced plans to send an additional 500 National Guard troops to Washington, though it remains unclear which states they will come from. As of early November, the D.C. National Guard had 949 members deployed. Troops from West Virginia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Ohio, South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama have also been assisting.

A federal judge last week ordered an end to the Guard deployment but put the ruling on hold for 21 days to allow time for removal or appeal.

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