National Guard Member, Sarah Beckstrom Dies After Shooting In Washington DC

Sarah Beckstrom, one of the West Virginia National Guard members shot in a cowardly ambush by an Afghan refugee Wednesday, has died.

President Trump announced the passing of the 20-year-old during a Thanksgiving evening call to half a dozen military units to mark the holiday.

“She’s just passed away. She’s no longer with us. She’s looking down at us right now,” a somber Trump told the service members. “Incredible person, outstanding in every single way.”

Andrew Wolfe, the other National Guard member who was shot near the White House, remained in critical condition, is “fighting for his life” and was in “very bad shape,” according to the president.

The troops were part of a “high-visibility patrol,” about two blocks from the White House, when the shooting occurred, authorities said. The suspect was identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, an Afghan national from Washington state.

The suspect’s motive has not been determined. He was shot by a nearby National Guard member and remained hospitalized in “serious condition” as of Thursday,” according to authorities and Trump.

Beckstrom, 20, was a member of the West Virginia National Guard. She and Wolfe, 24, were attacked outside a Metro station in the heart of the nation’s capital, law enforcement authorities have said.

During Thursday’s call with service members, Trump claimed that the capital had “no incidents for many months” amid the National Guard’s deployment in the city.

“I want to express the anguish and the horror of our entire nation at the terrorist attack yesterday in our nation’s capital, in which a savage monster gunned down two service members in the West Virginia National Guard who were deployed as part of the DC Task Force,” Trump said.

“Until yesterday … It was the safest place imaginable,” he continued. “And this is a different kind of crime. This is a really bad crime.

“Following the shooting, Trump ordered 500 additional National Guard troops to be deployed to Washington. Thousands of troops have already been deployed in the capital as part of the president’s immigration and crime crackdown targeting Democratic-led cities.