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The head of the United States Department of Homeland Security reportedly approved the purchase of Spirit Airlines jets before discovering that the airline did not actually own the planes – and that the planes lacked engines.

This bizarre anecdote was contained in a investigation published on Friday, which recounted how the official and a former campaign manager had recently attempted to buy ten Boeing 737 planes from the airline. People familiar with the situation informed the outlet that the pair intended to use the planes to increase removal flights – and for personal travel.

Those insiders also claimed that ICE officials had cautioned them that buying planes would be significantly costlier than simply expanding existing flight contracts.

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

Meanwhile, Democrats on the House funding panel said in October that during this fall's historically lengthy government 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 US Coast Guard entered into a sole source agreement with Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation to acquire 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 representatives wrote in a letter to the department.

A DHS spokesperson informed the outlet that some details in the report about the plane purchases were inaccurate but refused to offer additional clarification.

The legislature had previously authorized the so-called “big, beautiful bill” in July, which allocates roughly $170bn for immigration and border security operations, a amount that makes ICE the most well-funded federal agency in the federal government.

In September, it was revealed that the administration was transporting immigrants detained as part of its deportation agenda in ways that violated their constitutionally protected rights, often by air.

Leaked data reviewed from private airline GlobalX outlined the travels of tens of thousands of immigrants who have been shuttled around the country before deportation.