Canada set to repossess Gupta jet despite attempt to hide it

International media continue to report on the saga surrounding the Gupta family’s Bombardier jet, which was purchased with the help of a $41 million loan from a Canadian bank.

The export-import bank in question, Export Development Canada (EDC), is state owned and continues to face questions over its willingness to have done business with the family despite there having been numerous reports in 2014, at the time the deal was done, over the political vulnerabilities of Gupta wealth.

The family reportedly defaulted on the loan in October and still owe $27 million (R322 million at current rates).

The bank made a high court application in South Africa in February to ground the jet, using concerns around Ajay Gupta’s arrest warrant as a reason to fear it may be used to escape justice.

The plane’s tracker has since been switched off, having last been reported by South African media as making a flight to Russia from India in the first week of February.

The Washington Post reported on Friday that “under an international agreement called the Cape Town Treaty … lenders have the right to seize a plane in any country that’s part of the pact”.

Apparently, though, they’re still having trouble finding the aircraft.

So, wrote the Post, “If you spot a sleek Bombardier Global 6000 business jet sporting tail number ZS-OAK, Canada would love to hear from you.”