Investigators are probing if PTSD was a possible factor that fueled alleged DC shooter Rahmanullah Lakanwal’s rampage, sources said Friday, given his time working in a CIA-backed Afghan unit that’s been accused of brutality.
Lakanwal, 29, served eight years in the Kandahar Strike Force known as one of the “Zero Units” during US operations in Afghanistan, and was “responsible and professional,” an ex-Afghan commanding officer told CBS News.
But he has grappled with mental health issues since landing in American in 2021 as part of “Operation Allies Welcome,” a Biden administration program that helped Afghans who fought against the Taliban flee the war-torn nation.
“He was known for being responsible and professional within his team and had strong anti-Taliban views,” said Lt. Gen. Sami Sadat, a former commanding general of the Afghan National Special Operations Corps.
The married father of five is accused of opening fire on two National Guard members Wednesday, killing one and critically wounding the other after driving from Washington state to carry out the possible terror attack, officials said.
A motive for the crazed midday ambush is unclear, but sources told The Post one aspect the feds are investigating is whether he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, that may have worsened during his time in the US.
Law enforcement is also exploring any possible foreign influence or a potential ideological grievance as part of a wide-ranging investigation, sources added.
Lakanwal came to America as the US was backing out of its war in Afghanistan, where the murder suspect was part of the Kandahar Strike Force, or “03” unit, sources said.
Sadat also said Lakanwal was part of unit’s operations team.
When he moved to the US in the face of threats from the Taliban, Sadat claimed Lakanwal was “generally calm and maintained a clean record, though he suffered from PTSD.”
A US official brief on the probe also told CBS News that Lakanwal had been disturbed by casualties suffered in his unit during the war, and was also upset by the recent killing of a close pal abroad.
Lakanwal’s childhood friend told the New York Times that the accused cold-blooded killer was rocked by the violence he witnessed in his home country.
“When he saw blood, bodies, and the wounded, he could not tolerate it,” the pal said.
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“It put a lot of pressure on his mind.”
Lakanwal is accused of killing US Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and wounding Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe when he opened fire in DC’s Farragut Square neighborhood Wednesday afternoon, leading questions about the US approving his relocation to the US.
While in the Middle East, Lakanwal served in the Kandahar region with a Zero Unit, which was connected to the previous Afghan government’s intelligence agency and received training and support by the CIA.
Members that took up arms in Zero Units would have been subjected to extensive vetting, and continued to be consistently tracked during their tenure in the elite squad, sources said.
American forces would have also had a dossier compiled on him, sources noted.
While the US and other international allies dealt with Afghans serving in the army or police force turning on their American counterparts, those so-called “green-on-blue” attacks were not an issue with the Zero Units, NBC News reported in 2023.
“While we could not establish any connection between him and any terrorist organization, we also cannot completely rule it out,” Sadat told CBS News of Lakanwal.
“However, we can confirm that his background does not show any links to terrorists.”
An email seeking comment from Sadat was not immediately returned Friday.
It was not clear what vetting was performed by the Department of State that granted Lakanwal a special immigration visa. He applied for a visa in 2024 and it was approved in April of this year.
Lakanwal’s brother was in the same unit as his siblings and reached the rank of platoon leader, an ex-squad member told The Associated Press.
Lakanwal, meanwhile, started out as a security guard, but later became a team leader and a GPS specialist, according to the Associated Press, citing an Afghan man who said he was the alleged shooter’s cousin.
Zero Units carried out covert operations and heart-pounding nighttime raids against US enemies, but also became notorious for allegations of extreme and indiscriminate violence, a Human Rights Watch report in 2019 stated.
The units were even dubbed “Death Squads” for all the disturbing allegations.
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