Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem stated that the man suspected of fatally shooting a National Guard member and seriously wounding another in Washington, D.C., became radicalized while in the United States.

Speaking during NBC News' "Meet the Press," she explained: "We believe it was through connections in his home community and state, and we're going to continue talking to those who interacted with him."

Noem said Sunday that the administration believes the suspect, Rahmanullah Lakanwal, "became radicalized since he's been here in this country."

"We believe it was through connections in his home community and state, and we're going to continue talking to those who interacted with him," she said.

She noted that the Afghan man had been unraveling for years, unable to hold down a job and alternating between long periods of isolation without light and sudden, multi-week trips across the country.

"The Rahmanullah Lakanwal's behavior deteriorated so much that a community advocate contacted a refugee organization for help, fearing he was beginning to commit suicide,” she described. Lakanwal will be charged with first-degree murder, according to a statement last week by Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Washington, D.C. In Afghanistan, Lakanwal worked in a special Afghan Army unit known as Unit Zero. These units were supported by the CIA. He entered the United States in 2021 through Operation Allies Welcome, a program that evacuated and resettled tens of thousands of Afghans following the U.S. withdrawal. Many had worked alongside U.S. troops and diplomats. Therefore, when asked about the vetting process for his asylum claim during the Trump administration, Noem argued that “the vetting process takes place when you enter the country, and that was completely abandoned under the Joe Biden administration.”The Secretary of Homeland Security also said that the Trump administration would resume the asylum process after dealing with a backlog of cases.