Updated: Thursday, 3:51 p.m.<\/p>\n
TAMPA, FL \u2014 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 <\/a>on Thursday. The bomb plot is the latest in a series of threats made against the base.<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n The siblings, 20-year-old Alen Zheng and 27-year-old Ann Mary Zheng, who live in Land O\u2019 Lakes, were charged Wednesday in separate federal indictments, according to U.S. Department of Justice news releases. <\/p>\n The sister is in federal custody, while her brother has fled to China, Patel said. He has yet to be arrested.<\/p>\n \u201cThis FBI, working with our partners, will continue pursuing all those responsible and ensure they are brought to justice, no matter where they are,\u201d he wrote in his post.<\/p>\n Alen is accused of planting the IED at MacDill\u2019s Visitor\u2019s Center on March 10, the DOJ said. <\/p>\n 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. <\/p>\n