Afghan Man Shooting US National Guard Member Faces Murder Indictment
JAKARTA The indictment against a man suspected of shooting two members of the National Guard was upgraded to first-degree murder after one of the soldiers was killed. Investigators continue to look for motives, while the US government announces the termination of all asylum decisions.
Sarah Beckstrom, 20 years old, and Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, 24, are hospitalized in critical condition after Wednesday afternoon's shooting near the White House. Trump announced on Thursday night that Beckstrom had died.
US Attorney General Jeanine Pirro's Office said the charges against Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national who worked for the CIA during the Afghanistan war, now cover one charge of first-degree murder and two counts of assault with the intention of killing while armed.
Beckstrom and Wolfe were assigned with the West Virginia National Guard as part of President Donald Trump's crime eradication mission which federalized the DC police.
President Trump has also deployed or tried to deploy members of the National Guard to other cities to assist his mass deportation efforts, but faces legal challenges.
Trump called the shooting a "terrorist attack" and criticized the Biden administration for allowing Afghans working with US troops during the Afghanistan war to enter the US.
Trump said he wanted to "stop the permanent migration" of poor countries and expel millions of immigrants from the country.