New charges for Guard shooting suspect enable death penalty talks

An Afghan national accused of shooting two West Virginia National Guard troops near the White House was charged this week in U.S. District Court with federal counts in connection with the Nov. 26 ambush.

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, was issued new charges of transporting a firearm in interstate commerce with the intent to commit an offense punishable by imprisonment for more than one year, as well as transporting a stolen firearm in interstate commerce, according to a Justice Department release issued Tuesday.

Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, was killed in the shooting, and Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, was critically wounded.

“The transfer of this case from Superior Court to District Court ensures that we can undertake the serious, deliberate and weighty analysis required to determine if the death penalty is appropriate here,” U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said in the release.

“Sarah Beckstrom was just 20 years old when she was killed and her parents are now forced to endure the holiday season without their daughter,” Pirro added. “Andrew Wolfe, by the grace of God, survived but has a long road ahead in his recovery.”

Wolfe, who suffered a gunshot wound to his head, has made “extraordinary progress,” neurosurgeon Dr. Jeffrey Mai said earlier this month. He has since been transferred from acute care to inpatient rehabilitation.

In addition to the new charges, Lakanwal remains charged with first-degree murder while armed, assault with intent to kill while armed and two counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, charges in violation of D.C. Code. There is no death penalty in D.C. Superior Court.

Lakanwal, who was also shot during the attack, has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Lakanwal is accused of driving cross-country from his home in Bellingham, Washington, to Washington, D.C., to carry out the ambush.

He arrived in Bellingham in 2021 with his wife and five children as part of Operation Allies Welcome, a program that evacuated and resettled thousands of Afghans following the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan.

Prior to his arrival, Lakanwal worked with a CIA-backed Afghan Army unit known as a Zero Unit.

John Ratcliffe, the spy agency’s director, said following the shooting that the CIA’s relationship with Lakanwal “ended shortly following the chaotic evacuation” from Afghanistan.