The second National Guard member is ‘fighting for his life,’ the president said.
WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump announced Thursday night that Sarah Beckstrom, a National Guard member who was shot in Washington on Wednesday and was in critical condition, has died.
“I heard that Sarah Beckstrom of West Virginia, one of the guardsmen that we’re talking about, highly respected young, magnificent person, started service in June of 2023 outstanding in every way—she’s just passed away,” Trump said during a call with service members on Thanksgiving.
“She’s no longer with us. She’s looking down at us right now. Her parents are with her. It’s just happened. She was savagely attacked. She is dead,” Trump said.
The president called Beckstrom “an incredible person.”
U.S. Army Specialist Beckstrom, 20, began Guard service on June 26, 2023, and was assigned to the 863rd Military Police Company, 111th Engineer Brigade, West Virginia Army National Guard, according to a news release.
At a press conference this morning, Jeanine Pirro, U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, identified the two National Guard soldiers who were shot as Beckstrom and Andrew Wolfe.
Both Beckstrom and Wolfe had been deployed in Washington since August, when the troop deployment in the city began. The two were shot and critically wounded on Nov. 26 near the White House.
The other victim, Air Force Staff Sgt. Wolfe, 24, remains in critical condition.
“He’s in very bad shape,” Trump said. “He’s fighting for his life, and hopefully we’ll get better news with respect to him.”
The suspected shooter has been identified as 29-year-old Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national.
During the press conference, FBI Director Kash Patel said the shooting is being investigated as an act of terrorism.
Lakanwal drove across the country from his home in Washington state “with the intended target of coming to our nation’s capital,” Pirro said.
“He resided in Bellingham, Washington, with his wife and we believe five children. We’re working very closely with our federal partners, especially DHS and the FBI to review his immigration history and the vetting process itself,” she said.
By Emel Akan
