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In a deeply emotional Facebook post shared on Thursday, Gary Beckstrom announced the tragic passing of his daughter, Sarah Beckstrom, a member of the West Virginia National Guard.
“My baby girl has passed to glory. If I don’t talk to you, don’t be offended—this has been a horrible tragedy,” he wrote, capturing the profound grief of his loss.
Authorities have identified Afghan national Rahmanullah Lakanwal as a suspect in the shooting incident that claimed the life of Beckstrom and left her fellow Guard member, Andrew Wolfe, injured in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday.
Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Andrew Wolfe, 24, both members of the National Guard, were involved in the tragic shooting in the nation’s capital.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem addressed the incident on Wednesday via a post on the social media platform X. She stated, “The suspect who shot our brave National Guardsmen is an Afghan national who was among those unvetted and mass-paroled into the United States under Operation Allies Welcome on September 8, 2021, during the Biden Administration.”
Former President Donald Trump also commented on the situation, referring to the suspect as a “monster” and noting the individual was “in serious condition” during his remarks on Thursday.
President Donald Trump participates in a call with U.S. service members from his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida on Thanksgiving Day on Nov. 27, 2025, in Palm Beach, Florida. (Pete Marovich/Getty Images)
Trump noted on Thursday that Beckstrom had died while the other victim was “fighting for his life.”
A Thursday press release stated that “At approximately 2:15 p.m., on November 26, 2025, U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, assigned to the Force Support Squadron, 167th Airlift Wing, West Virginia Air National Guard, and U.S. Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, assigned to the 863rd Military Police Company, 111th Engineer Brigade, West Virginia Army National Guard, were wounded in a shooting near the Farragut Square Metro Station in Washington, D.C.”
Undated file photo of Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the suspect in the shooting of two National Guard soldiers in Washington, D.C., Nov. 26, 2025. (Provided by Department of Justice)
“All we need right now are prayers for my son,” a man at Wolfe’s family home informed a reporter, according to the New York Times.
