The suspect in the shooting of two members of the West Virginia National Guard shot in Washington D.C. on Nov. 26, pleaded not guilty on Dec. 2 after appearing in court remotely via a hospital bed.
D.C. Superior Court Judge Renee Raymond ordered that 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal be held without bond and said that his case would be due back in court on Jan. 14, 2026.
Lakanwal shot both victims in the head when they were just a few blocks from the White House talking to two other National Guard members when the shooting broke out.
One of the victims, 20-year-old Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, died of her injuries after being rushed to the hospital on Nov. 27. The second victim, 24-year-old Air Force Staff Sgt. Alfred Wolfe, was left in critical condition after surgery.
A supervisor heard the gunshots and saw Beckstrom and Wolfe fall to the ground. He immediately pulled out his weapon to fire back at the suspect and the two began to exchange fire.
After being shot and falling to the ground, Lakanwal tried to reload his weapon, but another National Guard member pinned him down while Secret Service agents helped to subdue him.
Following the incident, Lakanwal was arrested and has been charged with multiple serious offenses, including first-degree murder while armed and assault with intent to kill while armed.
Lakanwal entered the U.S. in 2021 under the Biden administration as part of the Afghan Zero Unit for the CIA. After applying for asylum in late 2024, the Trump administration approved his application in April.
Lakanwal lived with his family in Bellingham, Washington and drove to D.C. in late November to carry out the attack. According to NPR, Bellingham is a college town where many Afghan families immigrated in 2021 after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan. Residents in Bellingham told NPR that the attack sent shockwaves through the local community.
Gabriel Harrison, an immigration attorney who has met with some of the families, said that many feared their cases would be dismissed or that they would be detained following the attack.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi is pursuing the possibility of the death penalty for the suspect. However, D.C. bans capital punishment, so in order for a shooting case to be prosecuted it must meet certain requirements and it must involve a charge that would qualify for the death penalty.
Additionally, cases are usually tried in the D.C. Superior Court, but the attorney general can choose to try the case in federal district court.
The Trump administration argued Lakanwal’s initial entry into the U.S. under the Biden administration was the cause of the attack. Critics argue that the Trump administration is at fault because its agencies granted Lakanwal’s final asylum.
Investigators are pursuing Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder as the motive behind the attack. According to emails shared by a community member, Lakanwal recently quit his job and his behavior changed greatly.
According to OPB News, “The emails described a man who was struggling to assimilate, unable to hold a steady job or commit to his English courses while he alternated between ‘periods of dark isolation and reckless travel.’”
Following Beckstrom’s death, the principal of Webster County High School mourned her loss, paying tribute to her honorable attributes and impact on the West Virginia community.
President Donald Trump invited the families of the National Guards to the White House on Nov. 30. “When you’re ready, because that’s a tough thing, come to the white House, we’re going to honor Sarah,” Trump told reporters.
The Trump administration has since implemented strict guidelines for asylum and halted all decisions, as well as certain types of immigration applications following the shooting.
