By Bill Pan
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the man accused of killing a National Guard member and severely wounding another in an ambush near the White House in November, could face the death penalty after his case was transferred to a federal court.
The 29-year-old Afghan national has been charged with two new federal firearm offenses in connection with the Nov. 26 attack in the nation’s capital, the Department of Justice said on Dec. 23.
Prosecutors said Lakanwal is charged with transporting a firearm in interstate commerce with the intent to commit an offense punishable by more than one year in prison, an offense that carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine, or both. He is also charged with transporting a stolen firearm in interstate commerce, which is likewise punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
The new charges mean Lakanwal’s case will proceed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. He was initially charged in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia with first-degree murder, assault with intent to kill while armed, and illegal possession of a firearm in the shooting that killed West Virginia National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and wounded Andrew Wolfe, 24.
An updated complaint now lists the two federal firearm charges, in addition to the original three D.C. charges.
The transfer keeps the federal death penalty as a possible sentencing option, prosecutors said, since the death penalty is not available in D.C. Superior Court.
“The transfer of this case from Superior Court to District Court ensures that we can undertake the serious, deliberate, and weighty analysis required to determine if the death penalty is appropriate here,” U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro said in a statement.
“Sarah Beckstrom was just 20 years old when she was killed, and her parents are now forced to endure the holiday season without their daughter,” she said. “Andrew Wolfe, by the grace of God, survived but has a long road ahead in his recovery.”
In an affidavit accompanying the new federal complaint, the FBI said Lakanwal bought a stolen .357 Magnum Smith & Wesson revolver about two weeks before he drove across the country from his home in Bellingham, Washington.
On Oct. 15, he also contacted an individual to find additional firearms for him—including an AR-15 rifle and a stockless, AK-47-style pistol, which are typically equipped with magazines holding 30 rounds of ammunition. Ultimately, he was only able to obtain the six-round revolver, the FBI said in the affidavit.
According to the document, Lakanwal told the individual that he needed a semi-automatic weapon for protection as a Lyft and Uber driver. The individual, whom the FBI did not identify, replied that he could not help because Washington’s gun laws “are too strict.”
The seller told investigators he eventually sold Lakanwal the revolver, which had been stolen from a home in Seattle, Washington, in 2023. He said he believed Lakanwal wanted the gun for personal protection while working as a ride-hailing driver.
The attorney representing Lakanwal couldn’t be immediately reached for comment.
Lakanwal previously served in a CIA-backed paramilitary force fighting the Taliban before being evacuated to the United States under Operation Allies Welcome, the Biden administration’s program to resettle Afghans following the U.S. withdrawal from Kabul in August 2021 and the Taliban’s rapid takeover of the country.
Trump administration officials have since questioned whether Lakanwal was adequately vetted before he was admitted into the United States. Earlier in December, National Counterterrorism Center Director Joe Kent testified to Congress that, of the roughly 88,000 people evacuated from Afghanistan, at least 2,000 are believed to have suspected terrorist ties.
