INVESTIGATORS of the suspected terror attack on National Guard troops in Washington D.C. are probing a new motive.
It comes as neighbors of the suspected gunman Rahmanullah Lakanwal, claim he “disappeared” weeks before allegedly launching the attack.
The Afghan national living in Bellingham, Washington, is accused of the ambush on two National Guard members on Wednesday, killing Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and critically wounding Andrew Wolfe, 24.
As the 29-year-old Lakanwal faces multiple charges including first-degree murder and assault with intent to kill while armed, cops are looking into a new motive for the horrific Thanksgiving-eve attack.
Investigators are probing the mental health of the suspect who served in the Afghan military alongside US comrades as it is suggested he suffers from PTSD.
Lakanwal was a member of the Afghan Army stationed in Kandahar where he supported US Special Forces in the region, a relative told NBC News.
read more on the DC shooting
He was injured while serving in the army and fled Afghanistan; he was granted a visa to the U.S. through the botched withdrawal plan in 2021, Reuters reported.
Now, his former commanding officer has said he fought in one of the “Zero Units” and was “responsible and professional”.
“He was known for being responsible and professional within his team and had strong anti-Taliban views,” Lt. Gen. Sami Sadat, a former commanding general of the Afghan National Special Operations Corps, told CBS News.
Sadat claimed Lakanwal “suffered from PTSD” but was “generally calm” and had a clean record.
Meanwhile, sources have told The New York Post that federal investigators are looking into this possible PTSD link, which may have worsened during his time in the U.S.
The possibility of foreign influence or potential ideological grievance is also being looked into as part of the investigation, the anonymous sources added.
However, as President Trump dubs the shooting an “act of terror,” Lt. Gen. Sadat has said that no connection has been found between Lakanwal and any terror group, though he said it can’t be completely ruled out.
“However, we can confirm that his background does not show any links to terrorists,” he said.
Childhood pal breaks silence
The mental health probe also comes as the suspect’s childhood friend has revealed that the ex-soldier suffered greatly as a result of the violence he witnessed in his native country.
“When he saw blood, bodies, and the wounded, he could not tolerate it. It put a lot of pressure on his mind,” his pal Muhammad told The New York Times.
The covert Zero Units, which were supported by the CIA, were noted in a Human Rights Watch report in 2019 for allegations of extreme violence – even being referred to as “Death Squads”.
Further compounding this mental health probe, is the testimony of Lakanwal’s neighbors who say he abruptly vanished weeks before investigators say he fired at the National Guardsmen.
Neighbor Mohammad Sherzard told the Associated Press that Lakanwal, who was “quiet” and whose children were always polite and playful, “disappeared” about two weeks before the shooting in D.C.
An unnamed neighbor also told CNN a similar story, saying that the suspect vanished from the area and failed to attend his local mosque for more than two weeks.
“I didn’t see him, he disappeared,” the neighbor told the outlet.
“He was not coming … somebody said he’s sick, someone else said he went somewhere.”
‘Hanging on to life’
As the investigation continues and Attorney General Pam Bondi vows to seek the death penalty, officials have issued an update on the condition of critically injured guardsman Andy Wolfe.
If he, too, loses his life, Lakanwal will face a second murder charge.
In the latest update, Congressman Riley Moore confirmed that Wolfe, a “committed serviceman” is “hanging on”.
“His father is a deputy sheriff in the county next to mine and Andy wanted to follow in that footsteps and serve his nation as a National Guardsman,” Moore told FOX & Friends Weekend.
“Andy is hanging on. And he is a fighter and his family has told me that time and time again, he is a fighter.
“But above all what they want here is for everybody to continue to pray.
“I believe in the power of prayer and I can promise you his parents believe in the power of prayer… Please keep praying.”
