Dramatic moment National Guard trade gunfire with DC shooting suspect caught on video

The dramatic moment National Guard members traded fire with a gunman in Washington, D.C., on Thanksgiving Eve has been caught on video.

Two West Virginia National Guard members were shot, just blocks from the White House, Wednesday afternoon. U.S. Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, died from her injuries, while U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24, remains in critical condition, President Donald Trump said Thursday.

Photos and video, obtained by The Wall Street Journal, shows National Guard members reacting to the attack and running down the street. The footage appears to have been taken by a witness who was inside a car driving past the street corner.

The shooter can be seen looking around the corner, holding a revolver in his right hand, while a National Guard member runs down the street.

Seconds later, the National Guard member can be seen firing shots back at the attacker. The video also shows fallen National Guard members lying on the street, the WSJ reports.

The suspected gunman “came around the corner, raised his arm with a firearm and discharged at the National Guard members,” according to Jeffery Carroll, the executive assistant chief of the Metropolitan Police Department. The video of the incident corresponds with Carroll’s account, the WSJ reports.

Investigators have identified the suspected shooter as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 29-year-old Afghan national who entered the U.S. in 2021 and was living in Bellingham, Washington. Lakanwal was taken to a local hospital in the aftermath of the shooting, and is now in custody.

The incident was described as a “brazen, targeted attack,” by D.C. Attorney General Jeanine Pirro, who announced Friday that Lakanwal will face a first-degree murder charge.

He was previously charged with three counts of assault with intent to kill while armed and three counts of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.

Trump announced Thursday that Beckstrom died from her injuries, calling her a “highly respected, young, magnificent person” and “outstanding in every way.”

“She’s just passed away,” the president said. “She’s no longer with us. She’s looking down at us right now. She was savagely attacked, she’s dead now.”

Wolfe is still “fighting for his life” and in “very bad shape,” Trump added.