Attempted bomber revealed to be child of illegal aliens after alleged incident

The Department of Homeland Security announced that the suspect who fled to China for allegedly planting a deadly explosive at an important military base was the child of two Chinese illegal immigrants.

Homeland Security said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Qiu Qin Zou and Jia Zhang Zheng, both Chinese nationals living in the United States illegally. The arrests came after their adult children, Ann Mary Zheng and Alen Zheng, were linked to a failed plot to detonate an improvised explosive device (IED) at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida in mid-March.

Located in Florida, the base is home to U.S. Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East, and Special Operations Command, which oversees all special operations forces in the War Department.

According to the Department of Homeland Security, the alleged perpetrators of the attempt were born in the United States after their parents entered the country illegally.

ICE ARRESTS THE PRESIDENT OF WISCONSIN’S LARGEST MOSQUE FOR ALLEGEDLY HIDING HIS CONVICTION RELATED TO ATTACKS AGAINST ISRAEL

The agency argued that the case “shows why the improper grant of ‘birthright citizenship’ to the children of illegal aliens is not only inconsistent with the Constitution but also endangers all Americans.”

Birthright citizenship refers to the principle that anyone born on U.S. soil is automatically granted U.S. citizenship.

Alen Zheng, who is believed to have planted the improvised explosive device at MacDill Air Force Base on March 10, is now in China, the FBI said. He faces charges of attempting to damage government property by fire or explosion, unlawfully making a destructive device and possessing an unregistered destructive device, which could carry a sentence of up to 40 years in prison.

FBI Tampa arrested Ann Mary Zheng on March 17 after she returned to the United States from China, where she fled with her brother. The woman, who was accused of complicity and tampering with evidence after the incident, faced up to 30 years in prison.

He is accused of hiding or damaging a 2010 Mercedes-Benz to prevent it from being used in legal proceedings, according to court documents.

Prosecutors allege the brothers tried to cover their tracks by selling the vehicle to car dealer CarMax. Although it was vacuumed and cleaned, investigators later discovered traces of explosive residue inside the vehicle.

The day after Ann Mary Zheng’s arrest, ICE arrested both of her parents, Qiu Qin Zou and Jia Zhang Zheng. They are currently in ICE custody, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Both parents applied for asylum in the United States but were denied and ordered deported by an immigration judge in 1998, according to the agency.

The Department of Homeland Security said the Bureau of Immigration Appeals has rejected multiple attempts by the parents to reopen their cases. Despite this, both continued to live illegally in the United States for nearly three decades.

The department argues that the case highlights the “serious danger” of current US laws that grant automatic citizenship to anyone born on American soil, including the children of illegal immigrants.

WATCH: PRESIDENT TRUMP REVEALS THE FAMILIES OF MURDERED US SERVICE MEMBERS WANT HIM TO ‘FINISH THE WORK’

Mother Mary Zheng is accused of accessory after the fact and tampering with evidence and faces up to 30 years in prison. (DHS)

Following the parents’ arrest, Acting Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Lauren Bis said that “automatically granting citizenship to children of illegal aliens born in the United States poses a major national security risk.”

“This reality was highlighted last week when two U.S.-born children of Chinese illegal aliens were accused of planting a potentially lethal explosive device outside MacDill Air Force Base in Florida,” Bis said. “This incident underscores the serious national security threat to the United States posed by illegal immigration and birthright citizenship.”

Bis also argued that the policy of granting automatic birthright citizenship “is based on a historical misinterpretation of the Citizenship Clause” of the 14th Amendment.

The Supreme Court is currently considering the constitutionality of an executive order signed by President Donald Trump that would end birthright citizenship for the children of illegal immigrants. Trump signed the order on his first day back in the Oval Office in 2025.

PETE HEGSETH SIGNED THE MEMO OPENING THE DOOR FOR TROOPS TO CARRY PERSONAL FIREARMS ON BASES

Officers with the Tampa Police Department block traffic along South Dale Mabry Highway near the main entrance of MacDill Air Force Base, where CENTCOM headquarters is located, after a suspicious package was reported at the gate on March 16, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Octavio Jones/AFP via Getty Images)

The court held oral arguments in the case this Wednesday, and the justices were skeptical of Trump’s decision.

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD FOX NEWS APPLICATION

Amy Swearer, senior staff attorney at Advancing American Freedom, called the court’s line of questioning “disappointing” for defenders of Trump’s stance on birthright citizenship.

“Most people understand getting to this point, and I think even the government understands that it’s probably going to be a bit of an uphill battle to get to this point,” Swearer said.

Even so, Swearer said “I think there is a path forward” for a Trump victory, but it would likely be narrow and partial.

Fox News Digital’s Alex Nitzberg and Alexandra Koch contributed to this report.