Homemade Bomb Left At MacDill; Brother, Sister Indicted: FBI

Updated: Thursday, 3:51 p.m.

TAMPA, FL — A brother and a sister face charges for plotting to set off an improvised explosive device to MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, FBI Director Kash Patel posted to X on Thursday. The bomb plot is the latest in a series of threats made against the base.

The Air Force base, home to U.S. Central Command and U.S. Special Operations Command, has served as a key planning location for the ongoing military operations against Iran.

The siblings, 20-year-old Alen Zheng and 27-year-old Ann Mary Zheng, who live in Land O’ Lakes, were charged Wednesday in separate federal indictments, according to U.S. Department of Justice news releases.

The sister is in federal custody, while her brother has fled to China, Patel said. He has yet to be arrested.

“This FBI, working with our partners, will continue pursuing all those responsible and ensure they are brought to justice, no matter where they are,” he wrote in his post.

Alen is accused of planting the IED at MacDill’s Visitor’s Center on March 10, the DOJ said.

The suspicious package was found on March 16, putting the base on lockdown. A field screening of the package identified possible energetic materials, the FBI Tampa office posted to X.

The siblings left for China on March 12 and Ann Mary was apprehended while returning to the U.S. at a Detroit airport on March 17, Fox News reported.

Alen is being charged with attempted damage of government property by fire or explosion, unlawful making of a destructive device, and possession of an unregistered destructive device, federal court records show.

If convicted, he faces 5 to 40 years in federal prison.

Ann Mary faces the charge of accessory after the fact and tampering with a witness, victim, or an informant.

According to her indictment, she knew that her brother had tried to detonate an IED at the Air Force base and helped him by “concealing a 2010 black Mercedes-Benz GLK 350 with the intent to impair its integrity and availability for use in the federal prosecution of [Alen.]”

If convicted, she faces up to 30 years in federal prison.

In a separate case, a resident of a St. Petersburg assisted living facility was also arrested Monday for calling in a March 18 bomb threat to the Air Force base, Patch reported.

See Also:

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