National Guard member killed in D.C. shooting remembered for 'heart of gold'

Sarah Beckstrom, the slain West Virginia National Guard member, took a keen interest in criminal justice and dreamed of one day becoming an FBI agent.

Sarah Beckstrom, the West Virginia National Guard member who died of her injuries after a shooting near the White House this week, took a keen interest in criminal justice and dreamed of one day becoming an FBI agent, according to a former boyfriend.

Beckstrom, 20, believed her service with the military police would “get her foot in the door for a career in the FBI and help her in the long run,” according to the ex-boyfriend, Adam Carr, who said the two remained on good terms after breaking up last month following six years together.

President Donald Trump announced Beckstrom’s death during a Thanksgiving Day phone call with U.S. troops. He described her as a “highly respected, young, magnificent person” and added: “She’s looking down at us right now.”

The other National Guard member wounded in Wednesday’s shooting has been identified as U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24. Trump said Wolfe was in “very bad shape” and “fighting for his life.”

The suspected gunman, an Afghan national identified as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, faces a first-degree murder charge, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro announced Friday. Officials previously said he faced three counts of assault with intent to kill while armed and one count of possession of a firearm during a crime of violence.