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The head of the US Department of Homeland Security reportedly authorized the acquisition of Spirit Airline aircraft before learning that the carrier did not actually own the planes – and that the planes were missing engines.

This bizarre incident was detailed in a investigation released on the end of the week, which recounted how the official and a former campaign manager had recently attempted to buy 10 Boeing 737 aircraft from Spirit Airlines. Sources with knowledge told the paper that the pair planned to use the planes to increase deportation flights – and for personal travel.

Those insiders also stated that Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials had cautioned them that purchasing aircraft would be far more expensive than simply expanding current charter agreements.

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Complicating matters further, the airline, which filed for bankruptcy proceedings for the second instance in the summer, did not possess the jets and their engines would have had to be acquired separately. The proposal has since been halted, according to the investigation.

In the interim, Democratic lawmakers on the House appropriations committee said in October that during this season's historically lengthy federal shutdown, the Department of Homeland Security had already purchased two Gulfstream aircraft for $200 million.

“It has come to our attention that, in the midst of a government shutdown, the United States Coast Guard signed a single-source contract with Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation to procure two new G700 luxury aircraft to support travel for you and the deputy secretary, at a expense to the public of $200 million,” Democratic lawmakers wrote in a communication to the department.

A DHS spokesperson informed the outlet that some details in the report about the aircraft acquisitions were inaccurate but declined to offer further details.

The legislature had previously authorized the so-called “big, beautiful bill” in July, which allocates roughly $170 billion for immigration-related and border-related operations, a amount that makes Immigration and Customs Enforcement the most well-funded law enforcement agency in the US government.

In the autumn, it was reported that the administration was moving individuals held as part of its deportation agenda in ways that breached their legal rights, often by plane.

Leaked data examined from charter airline Global Crossing outlined the journeys of thousands of immigrants who have been transported around the nation before deportation.