One of the two members of the National Guard who were shot in Washington DC on Wednesday has died, US President Donald Trump said.
Sarah Beckstrom, 20, succumbed to her injuries, while the second National Guard member, 24-year-old Andrew Wolfe, “is fighting for his life”, Trump said on Thursday evening.
Both were shot at close range near Farragut Square in downtown DC just after 14:00 EST (19:00 GMT) on Wednesday. Police have arrested one suspect in the shooting, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old from Afghanistan.
The soldiers had been deployed to the capital as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to crack down on what it sees as rampant crime in several US cities.
Trump confirmed Ms Beckstrom’s death while on a Thanksgiving call with US service members.
“Sarah Beckstrom of West Virginia, one of the guardsmen that we’re talking about, highly respected, young, magnificent person… She’s just passed away. She’s no longer with us,” he said.
Trump later spoke to her parents, a White House official told BBC’s US partner CBS News.
Ms Beckstrom had enlisted on 26 June 2023 and was assigned to the 863rd Military Police Company, 111th Engineer Brigade of the West Virginia Army National Guard.
She had volunteered to work in Washington over the US holiday Thanksgiving, Attorney General Pam Bondi told Fox News following the shooting.
Jim Justice, a Republican senator from West Virginia, said he was “absolutely devastated” to learn of Ms Beckstrom’s passing.
“Our prayers are with her family, friends, and fellow guardsmen during an incredibly difficult Thanksgiving Day,” he said in a statement.
“We are also lifting up Andrew Wolfe in prayer as he continues his journey to recovery.”
Both soldiers had been on a high-visibility patrol near the corner of 17th and I streets, an area where many office workers mill around at lunchtime.
More than 2,000 troops have been guarding the nation’s capital since August, when the president began deploying troops to cities to tackle what he called “out of control” crime.
Ms Beckstrom and Mr Wolfe were among those who were deployed in August, the West Virginia National Guard confirmed to BBC News.
National Guard troops are a reservist force that can be activated to serve as military troops, but have limited power as they cannot enforce the law or make arrests.
The location of the shooting, just blocks from the White House, meant a number of law enforcement officials arrived quickly at the scene to treat the two victims and apprehend the gunman.
The suspect was shot four times, law enforcement sources told CBS News.
BBC
