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

This strange anecdote was contained in a report released on Friday, which recounted how the secretary 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 removal flights – and for private use.

Those insiders also stated that ICE officials had warned them that purchasing aircraft would be significantly costlier than simply expanding existing flight contracts.

Immigration officials confronting intense criticism after video reportedly shows unconscious man holding infant during detention.

Making the situation more complex, the airline, which filed for bankruptcy protection for the second time in August, did not own the jets and their engines would have had to be acquired independently. The proposal has since been halted, according to the investigation.

In the interim, Democrats on the House funding panel said in October that during this fall's record-long federal shutdown, the Department of Homeland Security had already acquired two Gulfstream aircraft for $200 million.

“It has come to our attention that, in the midst of a federal shutdown, the United States Coast Guard signed a sole source agreement with Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation to procure two new G700 luxury jets to facilitate travel for the secretary and the deputy secretary, at a cost to the taxpayer of $200 million,” Democratic lawmakers wrote in a letter to the DHS.

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

Congress had previously authorized the so-called “big, beautiful bill” in July, which allocates roughly $170 billion for immigration-related and border security operations, a amount that makes Immigration and Customs Enforcement the most heavily funded federal agency in the federal government.

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

Confidential information examined from charter airline GlobalX detailed the travels of thousands of individuals who have been transported around the nation before deportation.