Key facts
- Rahmanullah Lakanwal pleaded not guilty to 17 new federal charges, including murder.
- The indictment includes charges of murder of a person assisting a federal officer and attempted murder.
- Six of the new charges are punishable by death.
- Lakanwal is accused of killing Spc. Sarah Beckstrom and wounding Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe.
- The National Guard members were deployed as part of a federal law enforcement surge ordered by President Trump.
- Lakanwal allegedly traveled from Washington state to D.C. and ambushed the Guard members.
Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an Afghan national, has pleaded not guilty to 17 new federal charges, including murder, in connection with the November 2025 shooting of two National Guard members in Washington D.C. The superseding indictment, unsealed by the Justice Department, includes charges such as murder of a person assisting a federal officer and attempted murder, with six of the new charges carrying potential death penalty sentences.
Lakanwal is accused of killing U.S. Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom and wounding U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe. The Guard members were deployed to the nation's capital as part of a federal law enforcement surge ordered by President Trump to address crime. Prosecutors allege Lakanwal traveled from Washington state to D.C. and ambushed the two Guard members near the Farragut Square Metro Station. He was shot and subdued by other National Guard members at the scene.
Lakanwal had previously pleaded not guilty to nine charges related to the incident. During Tuesday's proceedings, he appeared in an orange jumpsuit and used an interpreter. His attorneys and prosecutors held a private discussion with Judge Amit Mehta, and the next hearing is scheduled for September 16.