Return to Transcripts main page

CNN News Central

Shooting Suspect To Face First-Degree Murder Charge; Crews Battle Massive Warehouse Fire In St. Louis; Winter Storms Disrupt Post-Holiday Travel. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired November 28, 2025 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[09:00:00]

BRAD SMITH, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking this morning, the suspect accused of shooting two National Guard members near the White House will now face a first degree murder charge after one of the soldiers dies. This morning, the other national guardsman is fighting for his life. Also breaking this hour, a massive warehouse burning in downtown St. Louis.

We've got the flames that you're seeing there on screen spreading to nearby electrical lines, and we also know that millions of Americans today are headed home from Thanksgiving, but for some winter weather is going to make a mess of their trips home. I'm Brad Smith, with Sara Sidner. John Berman and Kate Bolduan are out today. This is CNN News Central.

SARA SIDNER, CNN ANCHOR: Breaking news this morning. The ambush on two National Guard members in Washington, D.C. will be charged with first degree murder now that one of the victims has died. That's according to the U.S. Attorney for D.C., Jeanine Pirro. The suspect entered the U.S. in 2021 on a resettlement program after working with the CIA in Afghanistan.

Attorney General Pam Bondi previously signaled she would seek the death penalty in the case. President Trump announced last night that 20-year-old Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom died from her injuries on Thanksgiving. He called her an incredible person who was outstanding in every way. Beckstrom's former boyfriend, spoke to CNN and said she had a huge heart and would do anything for anyone.

The other wounded Guard member, 24-year old, Andrew Wolfe, he is in the hospital and is in critical condition still. CNN's Brian Todd is live in Washington this morning for us. What do we know about specialist spectrum? And we have just learned that they are upgrading the charge because she ended up dying of her wounds.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Sara. We of course got that unfortunate, very sad news last night that Sarah Beckstrom, 20- years old, had passed away as a result of her injuries from the shooting. Administration officials had telegraphed that basically, they were going to do this. They were going to upgrade the charges and they were going to seek the death penalty. Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, pretty much made it official a few moments ago on Fox. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEANINE PIRRO, U.S. ATTORNEY FOR WASHINGTON D.C.: She ended up being shot, ambush style on the cold streets of Washington, D.C., by an individual who will now be charged with murder in the first degree. There are certainly many more charges to come, but we are upgrading the initial charges of assault to murder in the first degree.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TODD: And that suspect named Rahmanullah Lakanwal had also faced a firearms possession charge in addition so as Jeanine Pirro said, very likely to be seeing additional charges in addition to first degree murder, and as Sara alluded to a moment ago, Pam Bondi, the U.S. Attorney General, had already said that she would do everything she could to seek the death penalty against Lakanwal if one of the Guard members died.

And of course, we did get that horribly sad news last night, and on that front last night a very moving scene in the District of Columbia where there was a dignified transfer, a procession carrying Sarah Beckstrom's body to the D.C. Medical Examiner's Office. Several local and law enforcement and federal law enforcement personnel lined the streets of Washington to salute her as she passed by them.

Those personnel included the National Guard members, D.C. Metropolitan Police, D.C. Fire Department, Secret Service members, DEA agents, and also Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth attended the dignified transfer. Meanwhile, the other National Guard member who was wounded in the attack, Andrew Wolfe, 24-years old, according to Jeanine Pirro, this morning, he remains in critical condition at a local hospital.

[09:05:00]

Jason Wolfe, who is Andrew Wolfe's father, told our colleague Gabe Cohen, yesterday, quote, please keep my son in your prayers. He is a great person, and he said that he is a fighter. He has been in the National Guard since February of 2019. You see it there. He was assigned to the Force Support Squadron 167th Airlift Wing of the West Virginia National Guard.

What we can also tell you is that President Trump, in a late night post on Truth Social regarding the suspect in connection to this incident, said that his administration is going to work, quote, to permanently pause migration from all third world countries. These are the President's words, he said, to allow the U.S. system to fully recover.

So that -- how that's going to play out, of course, could be quite complicated, Sara. We're going to see what comes of that.

SIDNER: Yes. Brian Todd, thank you so much for your reporting this morning. Send it over to Brad.

SMITH: Thank you, Sara. In the wake of the now deadly attack, President Trump is ramping up his crackdown on immigration, announcing on social media that the U.S. will, quote, permanently pause migration -- migration from all third world countries.

He also says the U.S. will re-examine all green cards issued to people from what the administration calls 19 countries of concern. CNN's Betsy Klein joins us, live from Washington this morning. Betsy, what else are we hearing about this permanent pause.

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Right, Brad. An interagency investigation is now under way across the federal government to determine how this horrific tragedy could have happened. Meanwhile, the Trump administration doubling down on its aggressive immigration policies. We know that the suspect is an Afghan national who came to the United States back in 2021 under Operation Allies Welcome.

That is that program under the Biden administration to resettle Afghan nationals amid the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. He applied for asylum in 2024 and it was granted under the Trump administration in April of this year. Now we've also learned that this suspect worked with U.S. forces in Afghanistan, starting in 2011.

A U.S. official tells CNN that he was vetted by intelligence agencies and clean on all checks. So, so many questions for investigators on his pathway to violence, going forward. Now, within hours of this shooting, President Trump moved to justify it as a reason for even more intense immigration crackdown. The Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said that, at Trump's direction, he has ordered the re-examination of all green cards issued to people from countries of concern.

That is a list of about 19 countries that includes Afghanistan, as well as Venezuela, Iran and several others. The President also last night calling for what he described as reverse migration. In a lengthy post to social media, he announced, quote, I will permanently pause migration from all third world countries and remove anyone who is not a net asset to the United States.

Of course, we have asked the White House and State Department for clarity on what those countries might include, but it's also worth listening to the President's own rhetoric as he addressed troops for Thanksgiving last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: This (inaudible) atrocity reminds us that we have no greater national security priority than ensuring that we have full control over the people that enter and remain in our country. For the most part, we don't want them. When it comes to asylum, when they're flown in, it's very hard to get them out. No matter how you want to do it, it's very hard to get them out, but we're going to be getting them all out now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KLEIN: Now officials say it is still too soon to say what the motive was, but that interagency investigation under way already. Brad? SMITH: All right. Yes, the question of how they're defining net assets too, something we will get some more clarity around. Betsy Klein, thank you so much. Sara?

SIDNER: All right with me now is the Governor of West Virginia, Patrick Morrisey, thank you so much for joining us. I know this is really difficult time right now for you, and of course, for the families who are sitting there wondering how this happened to their loved ones. I know you're heartbroken. I know you've spoken about that, and I understand you went to the hospital to visit both members of the National Guard.

Now U.S. Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, just 20 years old, is dead. Have you been able to speak with her family since learning of her death?

GOV. PATRICK MORRISEY (R) WEST VIRGINIA: You know, I spent some time in the hospital. We got in a couple nights ago, and then I was at the hospital about three times yesterday and the night before, and spent time with the family members, spent a lot of time with the members of the unit, and they were heartbroken with everything that's been going on.

And you know, there's just no words that can describe what they're feeling right now. So the most important thing that I'm trying to convey is that West Virginians have the backs of these two guardsmen. It's just an absolutely absurd thing what happened to Sarah.

[09:10:00]

She's a brave American hero, and I know that everything I've heard about her is just incredible. People loved her, they respected her, and obviously she was doing a great service for the state and for the country. So I think right now, there's a lot of focus on thanking Sarah for everything she did, grieving with the family, and obviously we're all rooting for Andrew as well, because now focus shifts, because we really are hoping he could pull through.

SIDNER: Have you heard anything more from his family about how he is doing. We understand he is still fighting for his life in the hospital in D.C.

MORRISEY: Yeah, I'll leave it to the medical folks for the up to date conditions, but he's in very serious condition. And I know that from talking with the family, and they asked me to convey this, that their only ask is to send prayers to Andrew and to have everyone across the state and the country say, let's lift him up.

I will say that if you look at the spirit of the people that were outside the hospital room, all the people that came to show support after what happened, it was just unbelievable. And people know that this is something that was so heinous that -- and they're -- they're angry, but they're also weighing in so much on behalf of Andrew and the family, and that is heart-warming.

SIDNER: I do want to ask you about some of the things that have come out before the shooting and since the shooting. There was this internal memo before the shooting that showed National Guard commanders warning that troops were in what they called a heightened threat environment, and that what they said were nefarious threat actors engaging in grievance based violence and those inspired by foreign terrorist organizations might view the mission as a target of opportunity.

Given what happened and this warning long before the shooting occurred, are you still OK keeping your West Virginia National Guard members on the streets of D.C. in their current capacity?

MORRISEY: Well, one of the things I'm most convinced of is that when you have these terrorists, when you have these evil doers, you're not going to back down when these people try to go after our service men and women. We have to send a message that when you're in for the right reasons, and I believe that these service men and women are in for the right reasons.

Crime in D.C. had gone down tremendously as a result of the actions that President Trump had taken. These are people, by the way, who had volunteered for the mission. They were there because they wanted to be, they signed up to be there. But the last thing in the world we should do is turn around and reverse course and let the bad guys -- let the evil doers win, because these are people that have violated every law and societal norms.

They're trash at the highest level, we cannot turn around and give in to them. We have to send a clear message that if you're going to mess around with our troops, you're going to pay the price.

SIDNER: So you're still comfortable having the West Virginia National Guard in D.C., where it's normally they -- you know, they'd be home, they'd be doing their normal duties.

MORRISEY: I think that when you have these people that have stepped up to volunteer who support the mission, and I think that having -- protecting the safety of the Capitol is really an important mission, then I'm supportive of that, and I know that what President Trump is trying to do in terms of additional vetting, I'm for anything that could help improve the situation, because it's unfathomable how something like this could happen.

And I just want to thank the other folks around who had the foresight, the readiness to go and to neutralize this person, because that probably prevented some additional problems. And so I think the guard has demonstrated bravery and courage, and they've been steadfast, and I support them, especially when they volunteer for the mission.

SIDNER: I do want to ask you about the suspect in this case. As you mentioned, he was captured. He was an Afghan refugee. While working in Afghanistan, we have learned that he was working with the CIA as a member of a partner force to the United States. The suspect was allowed into the country under a program implemented by the Biden administration, but multiple law enforcement officials tell CNN he was granted asylum in April by the Trump administration.

So two administrations approved of him being here. Do you blame either or both administrations for allowing him into the country?

MORRISEY: Look, I think what Pam Bondi has said, what President Trump has said, is that they want to have a comprehensive investigation of everything that happened and a very tight review. I strongly support that because. Whatever happened, we have to change it, right to make sure that it never happens again in the future.

[09:15:00]

So I think what the President is calling for is much more rigorous vetting. And look, let's be clear, President Trump inherited a disastrous situation from Joe Biden. I know, as the state Attorney General, I filed a lot of litigation to try to make sure that we were securing the border, and there were so many different programs that were set up over the years, it makes sense to do the review. I'm not here to point fingers.

I'm here right now to say, let's do the comprehensive review and get it right, because we cannot afford to have any more of our service members be subject to this kind of heinous act.

SIDNER: Governor Patrick Morrisey, I do thank you for taking the time this morning to come on our show. Do appreciate it. Brad?

MORRISEY: Thank you.

SMITH: Still to come, a cross country winter storm is crashing travel plans for millions heading home from the holiday. We're tracking it for you, and new details emerging overnight about that horrific high rise fire in Hong Kong. The death toll has surged. Officials revealed the fire alarms were not working properly. We've got more details there.

Plus some UPS planes grounded after a deadly crash will not be back in the air in time to help with this year's holiday deliveries. What you need to know, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SMITH: This morning, winter weather is waiting for millions heading home after Thanksgiving, a much larger system is set to bring more snow, rain and potentially slick roads across 1000 mile stretch of the country. CNN's Allison Chinchar is here now. Allison, who's in for a cold, slow trip home?

ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I would say, pretty much anywhere you see highlighted on this map is under some type of winter weather alert for the next system that's set to arrive. Again, you can see it begins in the west and then will gradually make its way across the High Plains, the Midwest and eventually impacting the northeast by the latter end of the weekend. But the Northeast is still finishing up their first system. You can

see a lot of the lake effect snow still left over from that first low pressure system that slid through. You're still looking at several more inches of snow on top of what you've already had before this system finally exits. And then there's another one right there on the heels.

You can see, again, a lot of the heavy snow starting to take shape across portions of Montana and Idaho. That's going to really start to fill in across the high plains in the Midwest once we get to tonight, especially across Iowa, portions of Nebraska, Kansas, and then by tomorrow morning, this is where we're really going to have some big travel problems across states like Missouri, Illinois, Iowa.

You can see all of that very heavy snow, and the pink indicates it's going to be a little bit of a mix. So you could have some rain at times. You could have some ice, some sleet, some snow, kind of all of that. All right there together wherever you see that pink color. On the south side, you're looking at very heavy rainfall, even some thunderstorms mixed in. By Saturday, late into the evening, now you start to see a lot of that snow pushing into places like Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland and again, still very heavy rain along the south side. Not ideal travel conditions.

SMITH: All right, layering up and being careful out there. Allison Chinchar, thank you so much. Sara?

SIDNER: All right. New this morning, eight more people now under arrest in the terrible Hong Kong high rise inferno. Officials with Hong Kong's anticorruption agency says the individuals are connected to renovations that were being done at the apartment complex. The death toll now at 128 and it is likely it will go up, because there are 200 people who are still missing at this point. CNN's Hanako Montgomery is in Hong Kong for us, with the very latest. You were there on the scene. What can you tell us is happening now, and what you're hearing from authorities about these arrests?

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Sara. I'm just at the base of this apartment complex where that deadly fire tore through seven buildings, and to the left of me, there are dozens of people gathered here holding candlelight vigils, laying down flowers to mourn the over 100 people lost to this deadly fire.

And Sara, let me just tell you. I mean, the atmosphere here is extremely heavy with grief. I mean, people are here with their kids, with their elderly parents, with their families. And of course, it's just a horrible day in Hong Kong as the death toll continues to rise, and people here are clinging on to the very fragile hope that those 200 people still accounted for -- unaccounted for, will be actually safe and sound.

And Sara, this fire, again, has affected I mean, just about everyone. We spoke to two first responders just a few moments ago, and they told us how they hadn't seen anything this deadly in their 20-year career. And they said that, of course, because of the nature of their job, they do have to separate the personal from the professional, but because they've been responding to this area, they've -- because they've been first responders in this specific area of Hong Kong for many, many years, it's just extremely distressing to see just how many people have lost their lives, their family members and their homes.

Now, Sara again, as you mentioned, people don't know the exact cause of this fire just yet, but there are lots of questions that still remain unanswered about just why this fire was allowed to spread so quickly, and why it was so deadly. Sara?

SIDNER: Thank you so much, Hanako Montgomery. I know it's a really difficult time there in Hong Kong looking at those awful pictures, just how strong and big of a fire this was. Brad?

SMITH: Thank you, Sara. Well, Dolly Parton shares a touching Thanksgiving message on Instagram amid her recent health issues, what she's thankful for in 2025. And today kicks off one of the biggest shopping weekends of the year. Check your list twice. Experts say it's going to be big. What can we expect from Black Friday all the way through Cyber Monday and what this could mean for retailers, that's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:25:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SIDNER: Breaking overnight, one of the two National Guard members shot in Washington, D.C., has died from her injuries. Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom was just 20 years old. The other National Guard member, 24- year old Andrew Wolfe is in the hospital in critical condition. And just last hour, prosecutors announced the suspected shooter, 29-year old Afghan national who's been in the U.S. since 2021 will now face a murder charge.

With us now is Democratic Congresswoman from Pennsylvania, Madeleine Dean. Thank you so much for being here.