National Guardsmen shooting suspect charged with first-degree murder after death of Sarah Beckstrom

( Post Millennial )

Following the death of Sarah Beckstrom, the West Virginia National Guard member who was shot in Washington, DC and died the following day from the injuries she sustained, suspect Rahmanuallah Lakanwal has been charged with first-degree murder.  

Speaking with Fox and Friends, US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said that the charges against Lakanwal were being updated, and that there are "certainly many more charges to come." 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe and 20-year-old Beckstrom were shot on Wednesday just blocks away from the White House in what officials have called a "targeted" attack. President Donald Trump announced on Thursday evening, "She’s no longer with us. This just happened. She was savagely attacked. She’s dead." Beckstrom's father had said earlier in the day that "I’m holding her hand right now. She has a mortal wound. It’s not going to be a recovery."

Wolfe has made progress, his mother announced. "We talked with the neurologist this morning and he said Andy is doing better than they imagined. He’s reacting to stimuli and is opening eyes and trying to move around. They are making sure he is sedated to allow the brain to heal so he is not feeling any pain. With this being said though, we know that with a brain swell, it’ll get worse before it gets better. But the neurosurgeon is hopeful that things are moving in the right direction."

The suspect, 29-year-old Lakanwal, is an Afghan national who entered the US in September 2021 under Operation Allies Welcome, a program that took place during the Biden administration's disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan. Officials had said following the shooting that the severity of the charges were based on the outcome of the two members of the West Virginia National Guard.