Dec. 2 (UPI) — Rahmanulla Lakanwal, 29, pleaded not guilty to charges accusing him of first-degree murder, assault and firearms offenses in the District of Columbia Superior Court on Tuesday.
Lakanwal is a citizen of Afghanistan and appeared virtually from a hospital bed for an arraignment hearing, during which he entered his not guilty plea to the charges against him, NBC News reported.
The charges arise from Wednesday afternoon’s ambush of Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, both of whom are members of the West Virginia National Guard and were patrolling on foot near the WhiteHouse when they were ambushed and shot.
In addition to the murder charge, ABC News reported Lakanwal also is charged with assault with the intent to kill while armed, possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.
An interpreter helped Lakanwal to understand the charges against him and to enter his not guilty plea that he entered through a court-appointed attorney.
Lakanwal is being held without bond after entering his not guilty plea.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro’s office filed the charges on Tuesday and said the investigation will continue into the shootings of two West Virginia National Guard members on Wednesday afternoon, according to The Washington Post.
Pirro said more charges are likely for Lakanwal, who is in police custody while hospitalized in an unidentified hospital near Washington.
The suspect is being treated for gunshot wounds caused by other National Guard members, who responded to the attack on Beckstrom and Wolfe that occurred near Washington’s West Farragut Metro Station.
Federal investigators say Lakanwal used a revolver to ambush the two near a public transportation station about two blocks from the White House, which caused Beckstrom’s death on Thanksgiving, while Wolfe remains hospitalized.
Lakanwal entered the United States in 2021 through a program initiated by the Biden administration to enable former Afghan military personnel and others to seek asylum in the United States.
He had served with an Afghan military unit that assisted the CIA and U.S. military in Afghanistan.
Lakanwal applied for asylum in 2024, for which he was approved in April, and lived in Bremerton, Wash., with his wife and five children.
Pirro said he drove across the country to carry out the attack on the two National Guard members.