Washington DC Shooting: US National Guard Member Sarah Beckstrom, Shot by Afghan Suspect, Dies, Says Donald Trump

One of the two US National Guards shot by a suspected Afghan national has succumbed due to his injuries, according to US President Donald Trump. Sarah Beckstrom, along with her colleague Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, was shot near the White House in Washington, DC on Wednesday, November 27. 

Trump announced that US Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom of Summersville, West Virginia, one of the National Guardsmen savagely attacked in Washington DC, has passed away. 

“I must unfortunately tell you that just seconds before I went on, right now I heard that Sarah Beckstrom of West Virginia, one of the guardsmen that we were talking about, highly respected, young, magnificent person, started service in June 2023, outstanding in every way, she’s just passed away," said US President Trump in his first live remarks since the shooting. 

VIDEO | Washington: US President Donald Trump (@POTUS) announces that US Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom of Summersville, West Virginia, one of the National Guardsmen savagely attacked Washington DC has passed away.

(Source: Third Party)

(Full video available on PTI Videos -… pic.twitter.com/xFS17z2IZI

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) November 28, 2025

"She’s no longer with us, she’s looking down at us right now, her parents are with her, it’s just happened. She was savagely attacked, she’s dead, it’s now with us, incredible person, outstanding in every single way and every department. It’s horrible,” he further added.

Also Read | White House Shooting: Suspect Rahmanullah Lakanwal Worked With Amazon and US Military, Say Reports.

The 29-year-old suspect shooter, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, is now in the custody of law enforcement agencies. The 29-year-old Afghan national moved to the US in 2021. 

The father of 20-year-old US National Guard Beckstrom told the New York Times that his daughter was unlikely to recover. “I’m holding her hand right now,” Gary Beckstrom said. “She has a mortal wound. It’s not going to be a recovery.”

Beckstrom and Wolfe belonged to the West Virginia National Guard, which deployed hundreds of troops to Washington as part of Trump's crime-fighting mission in the US capital. 

I'm devastated to learn of the passing of Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, a member of the West Virginia National Guard. She was only twenty years old.

As families across the nation come together today to celebrate Thanksgiving, let us take a moment to think of those in West Virginia…

— Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) November 28, 2025

Following Saraha Beckstrom’s death, New York mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani said, “I’m devastated to learn of the passing of Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, a member of the West Virginia National Guard. She was only twenty years old. As families across the nation come together today to celebrate Thanksgiving, let us take a moment to think of those in West Virginia who have been plunged into unimaginable grief.”