The attempted bomber revealed that he was the child of illegal immigrants after the incident

The Ministry of Security has revealed that the suspect who fled to China after allegedly planting a deadly explosive device at a key military base is the child of two illegal Chinese immigrants.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Chinese nationals Qiu Qin Zou and Jia Zhang Zheng, both of whom are living in the US illegally, Homeland Security said. Their arrest comes after their two grown children, Ann Mary Zheng and Alen Zheng, were linked to a failed plot to detonate an explosive device (IED) at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida in mid-March.

The base, located in Florida, is home to US Central Command, which oversees military operations in the Middle East, and Special Operations Command, which oversees all special operations forces across the Department of Defense.

Those accused of making this attempt were born in America after their parents entered the country illegally, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

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The agency asserted the case “demonstrates why the arbitrary recognition of ‘birthright citizenship’ for the children of illegal immigrants is not only unconstitutional, but endangers all Americans.”

Natural-born citizenship refers to the principle that anyone born on US soil is automatically granted US citizenship.

The FBI said Alen Zheng, who is believed to have planted an improvised explosive device at MacDill Air Force Base on March 10, is in China. He is charged with attempting to destroy government property by fire or explosion, making an illegal destructive device and possessing an unregistered destructive weapon, which carries a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison.

FBI Tampa arrested Ann Mary Zheng on March 17 following her return to the US from China, where she had fled with her brother. Charged with trespassing and tampering with evidence, he faces up to 30 years in prison.

He is accused of hiding or destroying a 2010 Mercedes-Benz to prevent it from being used in court, court documents say.

Prosecutors allege the brothers tried to cover their tracks by selling the car to CarMax. Despite being vacuumed and cleaned, investigators later found traces of explosives inside the car.

The day after Ann Mary Zheng’s arrest, ICE arrested both 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 US but were denied and ordered removed by an immigration judge in 1998, according to the agency.

The Department of Homeland Security said the Bureau of Immigration Appeals has denied many of the parents’ attempts to have their case reopened. Despite this, they both lived in the US illegally for almost thirty years.

The department says the case highlights the “grave danger” of current US law that grants automatic citizenship to anyone born on US soil, including the children of illegal immigrants.

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Anne Mary Zheng is charged with perjury and tampering with evidence, and faces up to 30 years in prison. (DHS)

After the parents were arrested, the acting Assistant Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Lauren Bis, said that “automatically granting citizenship to the children of aliens born in the US … poses a significant security risk.”

“That fact was demonstrated last week when two US-born illegal Chinese children were charged with planting a potentially lethal explosive device outside MacDill Air Force Base in Florida,” said Bis, who added, “This incident underscores the grave threat to national security posed by illegal immigration and birthright citizenship in the United States.”

Bis also asserted that the policy of granting automatic birthright citizenship “is based on a historically inaccurate interpretation of the Citizenship Clause” of the 14th Amendment.

The Supreme Court is currently considering the constitutionality of the decision signed by President Donald Trump that will end the birthright of children from illegal immigrants. Trump signed the order on his first day back in the Oval Office in 2025.

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

The court held oral arguments on the case on Wednesday, with judges appearing to question Trump’s order.

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Amy Swearer, chief legal officer at Advancing American Freedom, described the court’s list of questions as “embarrassing” to opponents of Trump’s decision on birthright citizenship.

“Most people have heard this, and I suspect even the government understands that this is going to be an uphill battle,” Swearer said.

Despite this, Swearer said, “I think there is a path forward” for Trump’s victory, although it may be small and partial.

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