A father of four who worked as an interpreter for US special forces in Afghanistan before fleeing the country to seek safety in the United States was fatally shot while working as a rideshare driver in Washington, DC this week. , said relatives and authorities.
The Metropolitan Police Department said it was looking for suspects in Monday’s fatal shooting of a man identified as Nasrat Ahmad Yar, 31, of Alexandria, Virginia.
Initially, officers were called to reports of an unconscious person just after 12 a.m. that day. When they arrived, they found Ahmad Yar inside a vehicle with at least one shot, police said. The 31-year-old man was taken to a hospital but pronounced dead “after all efforts to save his life failed,” police said.
Ahmad Yar’s relatives said NBC Washington that he was the father of four children and had risked his life working with US special forces in Afghanistan for a decade.
“He was shoulder to shoulder helping the American soldiers,” said his cousin Mohammad Ahmadi.
After US forces withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021, Ahmad Yar went on the run, eventually reaching the US.
“So he came here. He was so happy,” Rahim Amini, described as his best friend, told the outlet.
Ahmad Yar had initially started his life in the United States in Philadelphia, but felt it was too dangerous, so he moved to Northern Virginia, NBC Washington reported.
“He came to the United States to be safe, but his dream was really for his children,” said Jeramie Malone, who helps special visa holders from Afghanistan resettle in the US. “He always said he wanted them to have a good education. He wanted them to have opportunities.”
Ahmad Yar and Amini, who was also an interpreter, bought cars and became rideshare drivers in the US, according to NBC Washington.
Malone said Ahmad Yar had been driving until early Monday morning because he needed to earn a little extra money to pay the rent.
It was unclear what unfolded in the lead up to the shooting. However, in the security video shared by the police, four people can be seen fleeing the scene. Police have asked anyone with information to come forward, with a $25,000 reward available to anyone who provides information leading to an arrest and conviction.
“I was in shock, and the whole family, everyone is in shock,” Ahmadi said. “The whole community is in shock.”
At least two fundraisers have been launched to try to help his widow and their four children, the youngest just 15 months old and the oldest 13, according to NBC Washington. One such fundraiser, which was launched by Malone, had raised nearly $60,000 by early Friday.
A funeral was expected to be held Saturday at the Association of All Muslims of America Cemetery in Fredericksburg, the outlet reported.
