Prosecutors officially filed murder charges last Wednesday against the suspected shooter accused of killing one National Guard soldier and wounding another in Washington, DC.
According to a criminal complaint, Rahmanullah Lakanwal shouted “Allahu Akbar” while firing and a Guard member shot him as he was reloading.
Lakhanwal, who came to the US from Afghanistan in 2021, pleaded not guilty during a virtual court appearance from his hospital bed, the BBC’s US partner CBS reported. The charges against him include first-degree murder and assault with intent to murder.
The Trump administration halted all asylum decisions after the shootings and ordered a review of Afghan refugees in the US.
National Guard member Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died of her injuries, while another officer, Andrew Wolfe, 24, was seriously injured and remains hospitalized. Both were on assignment in the US capital from West Virginia.
West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey described Wolfe’s condition as “positive” on Monday and said he responded to a nurse’s prompting. Morrissey also asked for prayers “as Andrew is struggling to survive.”
According to CBS, a judge said the case against Lakanwal was “overwhelmingly strong”, and ordered him held without bond.
Lakanwal worked with the CIA in Afghanistan and fled to the US in 2021 after the Taliban overthrew the civilian government. US officials feared that people like Lankawal would be targeted by the Taliban because of their ties to the US military.
His 2024 asylum request was approved earlier this year and he lived in Bellingham, Washington state, with his wife and five children, officials told CBS.
Last year, Lakanwal was isolated from society and kept isolated in a room for weeks, according to emails from a social worker who said she thought he had a mental health illness.
“I believe the father has mental health issues that have not been addressed, and he will not talk to anyone,” part of the email, obtained by CBS, reads.
The charging complaint, which includes photos from security-camera footage, comes after prosecutors say the incident happened last Wednesday near an underground train station, when Beckstrom and Wolfe were on patrol with other National Guard soldiers.
It is alleged that after Lakanwal shot him, he exchanged fire with another guard member nearby, who returned fire and injured him.
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