THE SUSPECT
Lakanwal lived in Bellingham with his wife and five children, former landlord Kristina Widman said.
Neighbor Mohammad Sherzad said Lakanwal was polite and quiet and spoke little English. Sherzad said he attended the same mosque as Lakanwal and heard from other members that he was struggling to find work. He said Lakanwal “disappeared” about two weeks ago.
The mosque condemned the shootings. “The Islamic Society of Whatcom County is deeply saddened and shaken by the heinous attack in Washington, DC. Our hearts go out to the victims, their families, and all those impacted. We condemn this act unequivocally,” the mosque said in a statement on Saturday (Nov 29) afternoon.
The statement went on to say that the mosque is cooperating with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), but that members didn’t know the suspect very well, saying he was “not an integrated part of our community”.
“Like any house of worship, our doors were open to those who wished to pray alongside us,” the statement said, adding that the shootings “do not represent our faith,” and that “no community should be judged by the conduct of a single person”.
Lakanwal worked briefly this summer as an independent contractor for Amazon Flex, which lets people use their own cars to deliver packages, according to a company spokesperson.
Investigators were executing warrants in Washington state and other parts of the country.
Lakanwal entered the US in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome , a Biden administration programme that resettled Afghans after the US withdrawal, officials said. Lakanwal applied for asylum during that administration, but his asylum was approved this year under the Trump administration, #AfghanEvac said in a statement.
Lakanwal served in a Central Intelligence Agency-backed Afghan army unit, known as one of the special zero units, in the southern province of Kandahar, according to a resident of the eastern province of Khost who identified himself as his cousin and spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
The man said Lakanwal started out working for the unit as a security guard in 2012 and was later promoted to become a team leader and a GPS specialist.
Beckstrom enlisted in 2023 after graduating high school and served with distinction as a military police officer with the 863rd Military Police Company, the West Virginia National Guard said.
“She exemplified leadership, dedication, and professionalism,” the guard said in a statement, adding that Beckstrom volunteered for the deployment in Washington.
There was a moment of silence on Saturday for Beckstrom and Wolfe before West Virginia University’s football game against Texas Tech in Morgantown.
The Trump administration has ordered 500 more National Guard members to the nation’s capital. An army spokesperson said several governors were planning to support the operation and that specific troop announcements would come from their offices. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also said the president had asked him to send the troops.
Nearly 2,200 troops are currently assigned to the joint task force that has operated in the city since August, according to the government’s latest update.
Source: CNA
