The Afghan national accused of fatally shooting two National Guard members near the White House had reportedly been experiencing significant personal challenges for several years. His life was marked by job instability and extreme mood swings, alternating between prolonged isolation and impulsive, lengthy road trips across the country. His mental health declined so noticeably that a community advocate contacted a refugee aid organization, worried he might be suicidal.

Correspondence obtained by The Associated Press highlights growing concerns over Rahmanullah Lakanwal, an asylum seeker whose increasingly erratic behavior had raised red flags well before the shocking incident that took place on the eve of Thanksgiving in the heart of the nation’s capital. These previously undisclosed warnings provide a deeper understanding of the struggles he faced while adjusting to life in the United States.

Despite this, when a community member working with Afghan families in Washington state learned Lakanwal was the suspect in the National Guard shooting, they were taken aback. They found it difficult to reconcile the violent act with their memories of Lakanwal playing with his young children. This individual, who wished to remain anonymous, shared these insights while cooperating with the FBI investigation.

The tragic attack resulted in critical injuries to West Virginia National Guard Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, and Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, 24. Beckstrom succumbed to her injuries the following day. As authorities continue to investigate, they are still seeking to determine the motive behind the ambush.

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, aged 29, faces charges of first-degree murder.

In Afghanistan, Lakanwal worked in a special Afghan Army unit known as a Zero Unit. The units were backed by the CIA. He entered the U.S. in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome, a program that evacuated and resettled tens of thousands of Afghans after the U.S. withdrawal from the country, many of whom had worked alongside U.S. troops and diplomats.

He resettled with his wife and their five sons, all under the age of 12, in Bellingham, Washington — but struggled, according to the community member, who shared emails that had been sent to the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, a nonprofit group that provides services to refugees.

“Rahmanullah has not been functional as a person, father and provider since March of last year, 03/2023. He quit his job that month, and his behavior has changed greatly,” the person wrote in a January 2024 email.

The emails described a man who was struggling to assimilate, unable to hold a steady job or commit to his English courses while he alternated between “periods of dark isolation and reckless travel.” Sometimes, he spent weeks in his “darkened room, not speaking to anyone, not even his wife or older kids.” At one point in 2023, the family faced eviction after months of not paying rent.

The community member said in an interview that they became worried that Lakanwal was so depressed that he would end up harming himself, but they did not see any indication that he would commit violence against another person.

Lakanwal’s family members often resorted to sending his toddler sons into his room to bring him the phone or messages because he would not respond to anyone else, one email stated. A couple of times, when his wife left him with the kids for a week to travel to visit relatives, the children would not be bathed, their clothes would not be changed, and they would not eat well. Their school raised concerns about the situation.

But then, there were “interim” weeks where Lakanwal would try to make amends and “do the right things,” according to the email, re-engaging with the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services as was mandated by the terms of his entry into the U.S.

“But that has quickly evolved into ‘manic’ episodes for one or two weeks at a time, where he will take off in the family car, and drive nonstop,” the email outlined. Once, he went to Chicago, and another time, to Arizona.

Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney in Washington, D.C., said this past week that Lakanwal drove across the country from Bellingham, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of Seattle, to the nation’s capital to execute his attack.

In response to the two emails, the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants or USCRI, visited Bellingham a few weeks later in March 2024 and attempted to make contact with Lakanwal and his family, according to the community member, who, after not receiving any updates, was left with the impression that he refused their assistance.

A request for comment and clarification from USCRI was not immediately returned.