Isolation, erratic behavior and mental distress: A closer look at DC shooter's behaviour before incident

Emails say that the accused suffered massive mental leading up to the shooting incident

A series of emails written by a case worker in early 2024 has surfaced and come into direct focus on the behaviour of Rahmanullah Lakanwal, the Afghan man accused of killing one National Guard member and injuring another in Washington DC last week.

The correspondence, which was obtained by CBS News and shared by the BBC’s US partner, says that Lakanwal underwent prolonged isolation, erratic behaviour as well as several episodes that amounted to mental distress - before the shooting took place.

29-year-old Lakanwan has been accused fatally shooting 20-year-old Sarah Beckstrom and critically wounding 24-year-old Andrew Wolf in what authorities have called an “ambush”.

During the incident that killed the national guard, Lakanwal was shot by officers and has been in the hospital ever since. He now faces murder charges.

What do the emails say?

The case worker who assisted the family after their relocation from Afghanistan wrote repeatedly to the US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants expressing alarm.

According to BBC, in an email dated 11 January 2024, the worker reported that the family was on the brink of eviction and that Lakanwal had been out of work for a year.

“World Relief volunteers are trying to patch things for that family, but I think the father has mental health issues that are not addressed, and he won't talk to anyone,” the email said, according to a report by BBC.

A later message, which was sent on 31 January 2024, described more severe withdrawal. The case worker noted that Lakanwal “spends most of his time for weeks on end in his darkened bedroom, not speaking to anyone, not even his wife and older kids”.

It was reportedly also observed “manic episodes for one or two weeks at a time where he will take off in the family car,” along with intermittent efforts to “make amends”.

More on Lakanwal

Lakanwal had worked with US forces before entering the country. Multiple officials, including former CIA director John Ratcliffe, confirmed he served alongside a CIA-linked Afghan “Zero Unit”, a paramilitary wing active before the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. A former Afghan defence and security forces member also told CBS that he had been part of one such unit.

A childhood friend told the New York Times last week that Lakanwal had struggled with mental health issues following his service.

Lakanpal arrived in the United States in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome, the Biden administration programme created for Afghans who assisted US forces as the Taliban retook control.

According to CBS, Lakanwal applied for asylum in 2024 and was granted it earlier this year. He had been living in Bellingham, Washington, with his wife and five children — far from the capital where the attack took place.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told NBC on Sunday that investigators believed Lakanwal had been influenced after arriving in the US.

“Radicalised since he's been here in this country,” she said, adding that this was thought to have occurred “through connections in his home community and state.”