Afghan Suspect in National Guard Ambush Was Vetted, Despite Trump Administration Claims

A deadly ambush that killed one National Guard member and critically injured another in Washington, D.C. has ignited a fierce political debate over immigration vetting procedures, with conflicting narratives emerging about the Afghan suspect’s background.

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, is accused of driving across the country from Washington state to shoot two West Virginia National Guard members—Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, who later died from her injuries, and Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, who remains in critical condition. The two were serving as part of security operations in the nation’s capital.

President Donald Trump and his administration officials have repeatedly claimed Lakanwal was “unvetted” when he entered the United States as part of the 2021 Afghan evacuation following the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. However, multiple sources indicate Lakanwal underwent several rounds of security screening both before and after arriving in America.

According to intelligence sources cited by multiple news outlets, Lakanwal was a member of an elite “Zero Unit”—an Afghan paramilitary force that worked directly with the CIA in Kandahar. These units operated under Afghanistan’s former National Directorate of Security and were considered among the most trusted domestic forces in the country.

“The individual underwent thorough vetting by counterterrorism authorities before entering the United States,” reported the Washington Post, citing people with direct knowledge of the case. One source indicated Lakanwal was vetted years ago before working with the CIA in Afghanistan, and then again before his 2021 arrival in the U.S.

FBI Director Kash Patel and CIA Director John Ratcliffe have both confirmed Lakanwal worked with a “partner force” in Afghanistan that collaborated with U.S. government agencies, including the CIA.

When Kabul fell to the Taliban in 2021, Lakanwal was among approximately 190,000 Afghans resettled in the United States under Operation Allies Welcome. At the time of the shooting, he was living in Bellingham, Washington, with his wife and five children. He has pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree murder, assault with intent to kill, and illegal possession of a firearm.

The Department of Homeland Security described the evacuation’s vetting process as “multi-layered,” including biometric and biographical screenings conducted by intelligence, law enforcement, and counterterrorism professionals. According to a DHS press release from 2021, the process involved “reviewing fingerprints, photos, and other biometric and biographic data for every single Afghan before they are cleared to travel to the United States.”

Despite this documented vetting protocol, Trump claimed in a video message, “He was flown in by the Biden administration in September 2021 on those infamous flights that everybody was talking about. Nobody knew who was coming in.” Trump further asserted that Afghan evacuees were “unchecked” and “unvetted,” saying, “They just walked in… there was no check-in.”

However, Rolling Stone reported that Zero Unit veterans like Lakanwal actually “underwent more vetting than most Afghans” and that the screening process was “so successful that Zero Units never suffered an insider attack.” The roughly 10,000 Zero Unit veterans who resettled in the U.S. were reportedly vetted yet again after arrival.

Samantha Vinograd, a former top counterterrorism official at DHS under the Biden administration, explained that Lakanwal’s first vetting would have occurred over a decade ago by the CIA prior to his work in the Zero Unit, with additional re-vetting after arrival in the U.S.

Further complicating the narrative, Lakanwal’s asylum application—initiated during the Biden administration—was approved in April 2024 under the Trump administration, a fact that has largely been omitted in the administration’s public statements about the case.

When pressed on this point, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem deflected, saying, “The vetting process happens when the person comes into the country. And Joe Biden completely did not vet any of these individuals.”

Administration officials now suggest Lakanwal was radicalized after arriving in the U.S. “At this point, we don’t have indications that the horrific tragedy was a result of a vetting failure,” Vinograd noted. “Instead, the attorney general also said it appears the individual was radicalized once here.”

A more complex picture of Lakanwal has emerged since the shooting. Former associates describe a man struggling with mental illness, financial stress, and isolation. Case workers who had contact with his family reported “manic episodes” and behavior consistent with PTSD from his military service. One case worker characterized him as “a man who was extremely proud and capable in the world he came from, who felt defeated in the world he came to.”

In response to the incident, the administration has taken dramatic steps, with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announcing an indefinite pause on processing all immigration requests for Afghan nationals. The State Department has suspended visa issuance for individuals traveling on Afghan passports.

Trump has gone further, announcing plans to “permanently pause migration from all Third World Countries to allow the U.S. system to fully recover,” with USCIS subsequently pausing review of all pending applications for green cards, citizenship, or asylum from immigrants from 19 countries.

As the investigation continues, the case highlights the complex intersection of national security, immigration policy, and mental health services for war refugees—issues likely to remain at the forefront of political debate in the coming months.